


From a Sheep to Fox

by bebe_writer



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types
Genre: Book: New Moon, Twilight References
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-04
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-01-23 01:04:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 22
Words: 62,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21311572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bebe_writer/pseuds/bebe_writer
Summary: Set in New Moon when Bella runs to Italy to save Edward. But when she is taken to the three Kings, one of the Volturi's gaze lingers.
Relationships: Caius/Bella Swan, Edward Cullen/Bella Swan
Comments: 70
Kudos: 311





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Also, it has been brought to my attention that someone has plagiarized this piece on fanfiction. They go by the name High Admiral Greer. Please ignore their blatant disrespect to new authors trying to flex their writing muscles on this platform.

Caius waited for the two Cullens and the human to brought in.

Quite honestly he was bored. Just simply bored. He missed the renascence days where pillaging villages and taking heads was downright ordinary. At least then his days wouldn’t be spent sitting in this godforsaken chair waiting to hear yet another dull story. He hoped that Aro would at least sick Felix on them, that could be entertaining.

When the large oak door finally creaked open he saw Edward Cullen walking annoyingly slow to accommodate the human. Caius couldn’t get a good look at her as the Cullen boy was shielding her from sight. The other tiny Cullen was standing right next to him with her eyes darting in every direction. Futile really, to think she could escape the Volturi. Even with her unique powers.

Aro started blabbering on with his usual theatrics making Caius lean back in his chair and stare at the wall in boredom. When he heard his name being summoned he looked at Aro with an eyebrow raised.

"She knows too much. She's a liability_,_" Caius responded.

When he looked over to the group of criminals, he froze. The pair of brown eyes were looking up at him curiously from behind the Cullen boy. Her big pink lips were pursed and her eyebrows were furrowed, as if she was trying to solve some kind of puzzle.

Caius couldn’t breath, he couldn’t move, he could only stare at her. The thought of this…. This…. _Boy_ touching her made Caius want to rip out the Cullen brat’s eyes out. He didn’t know where this instinct came from. He didn’t know where this possessive need to have her came from. He didn’t even feel this way about Athenodora, and she was his wife!

Caius knew immediately that he would be forever tied to this little girl. He suddenly realized what this was, she was a true mate. He recognized this when it happened to Aro and he knew it was happening to him now. He never thought this would ever happen to him as he already had a wife, but here she was. A little human here to destroy all that he thought was true in this world. Of course he knew he his marriage to Athenodora was over decades ago. But they were a good match, even if he didn’t love her.

He thought true mates were a rarity, a dying myth that only Aro really supported. Marcus had told him that this wife was a true mate before she died, and Caius honestly just thought he and Athenodora were just that. But he knew now that he was gravely mistaken. This little thing cowering in Edward’s arms was who he truly belonged with.

But he knew he was in love with this girl the moment he locked eyes with her. This was the deal with true mates, bound together in life and death for eternity.

Edward Cullen noticed his demeanor change almost immediately, undoubtedly because of his mind-reading abilities.

The boy shoved the girl behind him and snarled at Caius, for which he ignored completely. Alice, the other Cullen, screamed at the top of her lungs and looked between himself and the human and back again, as if she couldn’t believe what was going on.

“What is this?” Aro said amusedly.

Caius stood and took a predatory step towards the Cullens.

_I have to get her away from those weak, pathetic excuses for vampires,_ he thought.

“No!” Edward yelled while shoving Bella behind him.

It was a well known fact that Caius was the most vicious of the Volturi. For what he lacked in powers he made up for in violence. He was also easily to be considered the cruelest of all three leaders, and he took pride in that. He knew that almost every vampire understood that he, and the ones he cared about, were not to be trifled with. So in this instance, he saw the look of fear in the Cullen boy’s eyes and he enjoyed it, reveled in it in fact. Because he knew this boy was afraid of him and everything he could do to him if he didn’t hand over the girl.

“Caius!” Aro boomed threateningly.

Caius whipped around and glared at him. Although Caius was as vicious as they came, he was also a good solider and followed orders.

He angrily stomped back up the steps and shoved his hand out for Aro to see his thoughts. When he felt the bony finger touch him for half a second, he heard Aro almost squeal with excitement followed by a snicker.

Marcus was staring at them both with an eyebrow raised, completely confused of what was happening as most were when it came to Aro.

“How delightful!” Aro exclaimed while clapping his hands like a child.

Caius fought the urge to roll his eyes and turned around. The young human girl was trying to fight against the hold Edward had on her so she could see Caius more clearly. When her brown eyes peeked around Cullen’s arm, they were as wide as saucers.

Caius had enough. He did not like the way this boy was touching her so freely. He hated that her hand was clutching his arm and her lips were pressed into his shoulder from the hold.

Caius darted left and then quickly turned right, faking his move to throw off the boy. In one move he twisted the boy’s arm, breaking it in three places. As the boy fell to his knees, Caius wrapped his arm around the girl’s waist and lifted her off the ground as gently as he could. He then ran to the far right side of the room with the girl in tow.

He could hear her heart beating erratically and she was breathing much faster. She looked positively petrified but when she saw it was Caius that was holding her, she seemed to calm down a little. Caius put a gloved hand under her chin and lifted it a little to get a better look at her.

“Ora sei al sicuro, amore mio,” he whispered to her so only she could hear.

Her eyes went even wider and her breathing quickened. She was almost breathing in gasps now. Her eyes darted to the Cullen’s and then back to him. Her bottom lip was quivering, but she didn’t say anything. She was also shaking like a leaf and still looked frightened of him. Caius didn’t want her to be afraid, but he also needed to make sure she was well-protected from the Cullen’s.

“This certainly makes things interesting!” Aro exclaimed.

Caius saw the Cullen boy was now being restained by Felix. Jane was glaring at Alice threateningly. The seer knew that Jane had no problem putting down anyone that got in the three prince’s paths. Caius nodded his thanks at Jane before he spoke.

“The human girl stays,” Caius said evenly.

“No!” Edward yelled while struggling in Felix’s arms. “She isn’t yours!”

Caius glared at the boy infuriatingly.

“Nor is she yours,” Aro said clasping his hands on his lap. “She stays and you live, that is the transaction we offer.”

“We do not –”

“–We do accept,” Bella interrupted from behind Caius.

Caius turned around slowly to look at the fragile human who stood before him. She was braced against the wall with her hands placed behind her. She was still shaking and still looked absolutely terrified, but her chin was jutting out defiantly at Edward.

Caius liked that. He liked _her_. He liked her stubbornness in disregarding Edward’s opinion completely. He liked that she had her own mind separate from that boy’s. He also liked how her chest was heaving up and down exposing her porcelain skin.

“Wonderful!” Aro exclaimed. “Felix, Jane, why don’t you two show out the Cullen’s and I will show young Bella around the castle.”

“No!” Edward yelled as he fought against the much larger Felix. “Get off me! Bella! I’ll come for you!”

“Don’t count on it, _boy_,” Caius rumbled.

He watched as Alice and Edward were escorted out of the throne room. He chuckled when Felix yanked Edward with seemingly no effort at all through the threshold.

Caius turned back around and moved to stand in front of Bella, blocking her from seeing Aro or anything else behind him.

Bella looked up at him in fear at first, but when she looked into his eyes, he saw her face morph from fear into trust.

“Are you alright?” he murmured.

Bella nodded, but didn’t speak. He frowned when she bit her lip in apprehension. He didn’t like that she still looked so scared. This wasn’t how true mates were supposed to look at each other. This wasn’t how Aro’s wife first looked at him. She practically threw herself at him.

He put his hand on her cheek and gently swiped his thumb across her bottom lip. Her skin was soft and warm, much warmer than a vampire’s of course. Her big brown eyes were probing his, asking what he was doing. However, she didn’t pull away. She just starred at him wide eyed with her heartbeat thudding so loud, he knew every vampire in the room heard it.

“Now, my dear,” Aro said conversationally. “What do you know of true mates amongst vampires?”


	2. Chapter 2

Caius was leaning against the windowsill in his chambers, glaring at the city of Volterra. He hated that he could hear young humans laughing, drinking and dancing in bars and restaurants. He hated that he could hear young lovers walking hand in hand to whatever evening activity they were party to, he hated the putrid smell of the alcohol and sweat coming downwind from the city, and he hated that his mate was not in his chambers, with him, right now. He wanted everyone to be as miserable as he was at this very moment.

After the Cullen boy was dragged away, Aro shooed Caius from Bella’s side so he could tell her about True Mates and all the dirty little secrets that came along with it. Caius, of course, followed them at a distance and listened to every word Aro said to her. She didn’t ask any questions, she simply nodded politely and continued to walk in step with Aro. Her arms were wrapped tightly across her chest and he could see her nails digging into her biceps tightly. She stared at the floor when she walked and didn’t make eye contact with anyone.

Caius heard Aro talk about how True Mates could hear each others thoughts when they touched, how they were born to find one another (even if it took centuries to do so), how they were naturally drawn to be near each other.

Caius was grateful that Aro didn’t mention to Bella that she was to be mated with him. He assumed that was because Aro wanted Caius to tell her at his own pace. Aro was nothing if not dramatic, but at least he showed mercy of his theatrics when it came to other Volturi leaders.

After Aro gave Bella the grand tour he led her to her bedroom where she subsequently hid for the last three days. The only time Caius saw her was when she opened the door to accept her meals and then when she opened the door to put the empty dishes on the floor in the hallway. Besides that, she did not exit her chambers once since she arrived.

Aro told her that she was not a prisoner, that she could roam the grounds as freely as she liked, but in her room she stayed. On the second day Aro was present when she accepted her lunch. He told her again that she could leave and she responded with a silent nod, although the look on her face told him that she was not going to be leaving any time soon.

Her refusal to leave annoyed Caius. He wanted to see her brown eyes and smell her natural freesia aroma. He wanted to ask her a million questions about her life. He wanted to know her aspirations and dreams, he wanted to learn about her family and friends. He was robbed of all this and hated it.

Caius threw his hands up in the air in irritation and started pacing the foyer of his chambers.

What was her plan? To just sit in her room until she turned old and grey? Or even worse, until they had to force her out to socialize?

He didn’t want to _force_ her to do anything. He wanted her to _want_ to leave her room and treat the palace like a home. More importantly, he wanted her to want to be close to him.

She was not a detainee. She agreed to stay here out of her own volition. She should not be sulking in her room like some angsty teenager that didn’t get her way. She was free to do as she pleased and she chose to wallow in her room, which infuriated Caius.

He looked at the clock and saw that it was 7:15pm. The sun was set in Volterra and the moon shone bright over the expansive city. She had already taken her supper so she was probably just waiting for bed at this point.

What time did humans usually go to sleep at? Maybe he could offer her a stroll through the gardens? Or perhaps she wanted to explore the city? He could accompany her…

He quickly wrenched open the heavy oak door of his chambers and made his way to her room.

He didn’t have any sort of plan whatsoever. But he revolted the idea of being afraid of something as small and weak as a human girl. He was the type of man that would face problems head on and never shied away from conflict. He was a man that fought in countless wars, he beheaded kings and slaughtered villages. He was not some pubescent boy cowering in the corner and refused to let her turn him into one.

When he made it to her chamber door he stopped. He realized that he had no idea what human teenage girls did for fun. He didn’t know what they needed and/or wanted in life. What could _he_ possibly talk to her about?

He quickly turned and made a dash for the library. When Aro was showing her around the palace he saw her eyes slightly widen at the massive collection of books they had acquired over the years. She kept her reactions hidden for the most part. She seemed to have her guard up constantly whenever anyone spoke to her.

Caius quickly started picking books at random as he didn’t know what she liked, or if she even read at all. Some modern mysteries, some romances, others were ancient texts on the history of vampires and children of the moon. At last minute he snatched the text that documented the 100-year war against the werewolves that Caius himself led He thought that if she was going to be with him, she should at least understand what kind of a man he was. He wanted her to know that he was a brutal killer. He refused to have secrets between them. Couples who kept secrets were weak in his opinion. Why not just tell each other the ruthless truth, even if it was ugly and cruel? At least then no one would feel betrayed in the end.

Caius sighed when he recalled telling Athenodora that he found a True Mate two days prior. He told her right after Bella had disappeared to her room. His ex-wife seemed to be more interested that her status remained high in the Volturi rather than actually loosing a husband. Caius couldn’t blame her. Their marriage was over decades ago. He didn’t really even enjoy her company at all anymore. For the last few centuries they had just been going through the motions. Hell, he hadn’t had sex with her since the 1900’s and even then it was disappointing. After they had the marriage annulled she went right back to her work in running the palace with Sulpicia, although he did hear a rumor that she thought the human girl looked measly and pathetic, which angered him. He decided not to act upon it right away, but he would notify Aro that if she touched Bella, he would rip her limb from limb.

He quickly made his way back to Bella’s door and looked around the hallway and saw that no one was around, for which he was grateful. He imagined that Aro chose this bedroom in particular because it was so far away from all the guards.

He stood there for a few minutes deciding what he was going to say to her. He instead opted for subtlety. He didn’t want to scare her or come on too strong in just the first few days of her arrival.

He placed the books on the floor, knocked three times on her door, and quickly ran behind the corner wall. He heard the squeak from the bench she mustve been sitting on and her bare feet padding on the stone floor. When the door opened Caius held his breath and waited.

“Hello?” she whispered into the dark hallway.

Caius didn’t answer. He would not show himself as hiding around the corner like some sort of eerie stalker.

He heard her softly gasp, no doubt finding the books at her feet. He then heard the soft thudding of each book hitting the floor as she looked through the materials. Caius couldn’t help but smile that she was actually interested in what was brought to her. He heard her gather the books into her arms and softly shut the door.

The next evening, at exactly 7:15pm Caius went back to her door and saw that three of the five books were stacked neatly next to her door. He noted that she still had two of the books he collected for her. She was probably still amidst reading them.

When he gathered the books into his arms, he smelt her scent all over the mystery novel and a historical text, but the modern romance novel was left virtually untouched. Her scent only coated the first few pages. The historical text was the most potent, which he deduced that she read and then re-read certain points of it.

He made a mental note that she did not like the modern romances but she did like historical texts of vampires. She probably wanted to learn more about the Volturi and where her new home was.

He considered this day a win because he finally found something she enjoyed and that he could provide.

For the remainder of the week he continued to deliver and receive books back and forth from the library. He enjoyed pleasing her and making her time here more comfortable. It surprised him how happy he was in doing such a minimal task. 

Even now he was smiling as he ran back to the library and started gathering more texts. He also snatched some other genres varying from fantasy to westerns, just in case.

On his way back to her door he rounded a corner and ran straight into the hulking build that was Felix. He was so engrossed in his task he didn’t even hear him in the hallway.

“Whoa, my Lord,” Felix said with a wide smile. “Apologies, I thought you would’ve heard me.”

“Apparently not,” Caius replied.

When he tried to side step the younger vampire, Felix stepped with him. Blocking his path.

“Don’t you have some errands to be running for Aro?” Caius growled.

“I could say the same thing for you and the human,” Felix retorted. “Tell me, what interested do you have in the history of vampires? Weren’t you the one that wrote and lived the fucking books in the first place?”

Caius glared at the larger vampire. Felix was known for ribbing and teasing other vampires. He thought it was hilarious when he would annoy a vampire to the point of wanting to fight him. He enjoyed the physical altercation as it was practise for him.

He only crossed Caius once and that was when Felix first joined the Volturi. Caius had pinned him against the floor in seconds and would’ve torn out his eyes if it wasn’t Aro interfering. Since then Felix understood that the rumors of Caius’ infamously short temper were true.

Caius dropped the books to their feet and stepped over them so he was nose to nose with Felix.

“You are too enamoured with other people’s affairs, Felix,” Caius rumbled. “You should mind your tongue when speaking to me or I’ll cut it off and feed it to the crows.”

Felix laughed boomingly.

“Apologies, my Lord,” he said while bowing condescendingly. “I meant no offence. Just an observation.”

“You can take your tiresome observations to Aro. No doubt you are spying on me by the direction of him anyways.”

Caius grabbed the younger vampire by the throat and slammed him into the closest wall. “You may also tell him that if he is going to send a rat to spy on me, he should at least choose one of skill and stealth, rather than some big fucking moron who can’t keep quiet to save his pathetic life.”

With that he slammed Felix into the wall again, cracking the expensive stone up to the celling. He then grabbed the stack of books and walked away from a cringing Felix.

He could tell he scared the young man. He should’ve known not to press him so much. Caius’ fuse was normally short, but ever since Bella arrived to the castle, his irritability was growing.

As he approached her door he heard her heartbeat shockingly close on the other side. She must’ve been waiting right there for him.

_Don’t be such a woman_, he thought to himself. _Pull yourself together._

He swallowed heavily and knocked on the door.


	3. Chapter 3

Bella opened the door about three inches and looked at Caius in pure fear.

She was wearing black tights with a sweater that was two sizes too big for her and thick wool socks. Her hair was in two heavy braids that began behind her ears and dangled around her belly. Her heart was beating erratically and her breathing was hitched. Her hand was clenching the door so tightly her hand was turning white. Her other hand was visibly shaking and she put it on the door frame to steady herself. Her sweet aroma permeated the air around him and he had to stop himself from groaning in pleasure.

He wanted to untie her hair and run his fingers through the soft-looking tresses. He had been away from her too long. He looked for any differences in her appearance as he knew humans aged at such a rapid pace, but found nothing.

She was still an exquisite beauty, even if she did hide behind her hair and modest clothing. Her eyes were full of mystery that he wanted to uncover. He wanted her in every way she would allow.

He suddenly realized that neither of them had said anything and he had been standing there for a few minutes.

“I… brought these for you,” he said a matter-of-factly while shoving the books forward.

She jumped back at the sudden movement and gasped.

Caius chastised himself for doing such a thing. He forgot that humans were not as fast and had slow reflexes. Even if she was around vampire’s constantly, she would still be shocked by the speed of which he moved. Even more so now that she was in a foreign country around a group blood-thirsty vampires.

“Uh… thanks,” she said reaching through the small slit in the door to take the books.

He noticed that she stood as far back from him as she possibly could and was mindful not to touch him.

Caius nodded curtly and clasped his hands behind his back. “I didn’t know what you liked to read so I brought a variety.”

Bella nodded awkwardly and looked at the ground. “Thank-you.”

He waited for her to elaborate, and when she didn’t he sighed. He could see she was still scared of him and wanted to run in the other direction. He vowed to get her comfortable around him so he could at least learn something, if anything about him.

“So you like the history of vampires?” Caius asked in attempts to start a conversation.

Bella shrugged noncommittally while still staring at the floor.

Caius waited for her to answer with words. He was getting more annoyed by the second from being deprived of her voice and her eyes. He would not leave until she spoke to him.

“Why?” she asked finally looking up at him.

“Why what?” Caius asked in confusion.

“Why are you bringing me books?” she asked furrowing her brow.

Caius cocked his head at her inquiry. “Do you not like to read them?”

“No,” she said shaking her head. “I like to read. I’m just wondering why you’re bringing them to me.”

Caius sighed and noted that she was observant. “I figured since you refuse to leave your room, even though you’ve been instructed that you are more than welcome to explore the grounds, I might as well make your time pass a little faster.”

Caius unconsciously leaned in to observe her reaction. “Why don’t you leave your room?” he asked.

“I… I… don’t want to,” she answered.

“Are you afraid?”

“No,” she lied. Badly.

Caius smiled at the fact that he managed to get a little more information on her with a simple question. She was a brave little one even though every person in the building could kill her with the flick of a wrist.

“You don’t need to be afraid. Everyone in the castle has been instructed not to hurt you. In fact, anyone that tries to will be executed,” Caius explained conversationally.

“I know,” Bella mumbled. “Felix told me that already.”

Caius’ head snapped up and glared at her. “Felix,” he said. “Felix has come to see you?”

“Yes,” she said chewing on her bottom lip.

“Why? What else did he say?” Caius growled.

Bella shifted her weight from one foot to the next quietly. She looked even more scared than when she first opened the door.

“He came and brought me my food my first day here. He also said that you would kill anyone that came near me and then he left,” she explained quickly. “Please don’t kill him,” she added quietly.

Caius sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. It was impossible for vampires to get headaches, but Felix proved to be the acceptation in most cases. He was always goading people to start some kind of an altercation.

“I wont kill him,” Caius said as calmly as he could. “And I wont kill anyone that comes near you either.”

Suddenly Caius’ arms dropped and he stepped forward, making her step back, still ready to slam the door and run away in any moment.

“Wait,” he said incredulously. “Is that why you aren’t leaving your room? Because you’re afraid that I’ll kill someone?”

Bella bit her bottom lip even harder and shrugged. “I don’t know,” she answered meekly.

He couldn’t believe that she even cared if any one of the Volturi died. He was learning more and more about her now then he thought he ever could. Not only was she brave, but she was also strangely kind. Even to those who were seen as monsters by others.

Caius clasped his hand behind his back. He needed to calm himself if he ever wanted her to be comfortable around him. She was already scared and he couldn’t let his anger with Felix show right now.

“I’m not going to kill anyone for being around you,” he explained. “Felix enjoys aggravating others and he is exceedingly good at aggravating me.”

“I don’t want him to get into any trouble either,” she mumbled.

“Why do you care what happens to him?” he said angrily. “And don’t shrug again,” he added while folding his arms over his chest.

“I – I – just don’t like to be… fussed over,” she explained quietly.

Caius nodded in understanding. He also hated to be ‘fussed over’ as she put it. At least they had that in common.

She nodded back at him. When he saw that she was about to say her goodbye he panicked. He wasn’t ready to lose her again. He didn’t want her to go away yet if only for a minute.

“If you feel uncomfortable walking the grounds on your own then I can accompany you if you wish,” Caius suddenly blurted out.

Bella stopped shutting the door and looked up at him in shock.

“What?” she said with wide eyes.

“If you are too scared to walk the halls on your own, then I can come with you. I know these tunnels can be quite confusing if you do not have the senses of a vampire. Humans get lost in here all the time,” he explained in false casualness.

When Bella looked up at him with her big brown eyes, it took everything for Caius not to grab her by the face and kiss her. He never wanted something as much as he wanted to touch her right now.

He never experienced the power of True Mates. But according to Aro, it was astonishingly powerful. He even said the first time touching your True Mates skin solidifies everything. It as if you know someone better than they know themselves as soon as you touch. You know their fears, their desires, and every memory or thought they’ve ever had. Aro said the pureness of the love and affection can never be duplicated. That was why he hid his wife in the towers for so long. He refused to go through what Marcus did when he lost Didyme.

Ever since Marcus’ wife was killed he was a shell of himself. He isolated himself from everyone and everything. He didn’t even leave his chamber for the first ten years. They had to bring humans to his chambers so he stayed alive. Since she died he barely spoke a word to anyone unless asked.

“I would like that,” Bella replied softly pulling himself from his memories.

Caius swallowed and tried to keep his face as neutral as possible. “Very well,” he said. “I will come by tomorrow after you’ve rested.”

Bella nodded once. “Alright. Thank-you, Caius,” she said timidly.

Caius turned and walked away from her before he could embarrass himself further. He hated that such a small woman turned him into a stammering idiot. He also hated that he was nervous for tomorrow with her.

As he tiredly made his way up the tower steps towards his room, he heard the scuffling of feet. He knew that move anywhere. Marcus used to do it all the time to warn him that he was present, to keep him from attacking at the first sight of someone near his bedroom door. His room was more isolated than Bella’s, he liked it that way.

“Marcus,” Caius drawled as climbed the remaining steps. “To what do I owe this surprise visit?”

“Your relationship with the human girl,” he stated. “It is strong. I am assuming you want to learn about it further?”

His gift of relationship identification was always a great help to the Volturi. In seeing the emotional ties between individuals, it allowed their blackmailing and threats to go through much more smoothly. Although right at this instant, Caius hated it.

He did not want to be in the centre of attention right now. He wanted to be left alone with his obsessive thoughts about the girl. He knew that Marcus knew the extent of the love he had for her. He also knew the level of dissatisfaction Caius had for his wife, even though he never voiced it.

“There is no relationship, Marcus. I’ve barely spoke to her. I would normally tell you to mind your own business, but _I_ am assuming that you were summoned here by Aro.”

“Correct,” he answered simply.

“Well? Get on with it,” Caius said folding his arms across his chest in exasperation.

“She is scared of almost everyone here, Felix the least, and Jane the most,” he explained. “When she first saw you the connection was instantaneous, as I’m sure you felt it as well. She trusts you completely, but she is scared of that trust. She is also extremely confused about you, but is equally as interested in you as you are of her. Although, over the last few days she has grown more and more scared of you because of what I am assuming she has heard about you from Felix.”

Caius clenched his teeth but didn’t offer a reply. When Marcus didn’t continue, Caius stepped around him to get to his bedroom. He had had enough of his colleague’s findings and wanted to be alone.

“Caius,” Marcus beckoned making Caius stop and turn around in annoyance. “You should also know she is still in love with the Cullen boy.” 

Caius growled and slammed his bedroom door in Marcus’ face. He then decided that he hated everything in his room and destroyed every piece of furniture he could get his hands on.


	4. Chapter 4

It was exactly 12:32pm when Caius showed up at her door the next day. He was standing there for about five minutes and still hadn’t knocked. He couldn’t believe that he fought in thousands of wars with little to no problems, but was too scared to knock on the door of the woman he was trying to court.

After Marcus left and he finished redecorating his room, he sat on his windowsill and sulked. He couldn’t believe that she still had feelings for that puny weakling. The Cullen brat was stupid for starting something with a human in the first place, exposing their world to a girl who would’ve been fine without. Then taking the cowards way out by leaving her and then asking for the Volturi to end his life when he thought she died? Feeble, pitiable, useless boy! He didn’t deserve her. Caius did. And he would show her. He had to if he wanted her to love him as much as he knew he already loved her.

Did he love her? He wasn’t sure if he ever felt such a thing before. He had no memories of his human existence. Those were completely draped in such a thick fog that he couldn’t tell truth from fiction. Comparing his wife to Bella was also no good because there was no comparison, Bella was everything, his wife was just a convenient partner for a short period of time.

When he realized he couldn't get her off his mind, he jumped down from the window and ran into the city. He was angry with her and needed to kill something.

He roamed the dark streets and alley ways looking for anyone that looked like her. He walked around for about an hour until he found a woman outside a bar smoking a cigarette. She had long auburn hair and chocolate colored eyes. Her skin was the wrong color but Caius took what he could get. He walked over to her and asked for a cigarette, when she moved to give him her lighter, he snatched her arm and dragged her out behind the dumpster. She smelt horrible, like smoke and grappa, nothing like Bella did. He sunk his teeth into her neck and he was instantly disappointed. She screamed and thrashed, but was soon quiet, dead and limp in his arms.

He didn’t feel better after he threw the lifeless body in to the dumpster. In fact, he felt worse, even angrier than when he first started.

The rest of the night he spent pacing his room, his anger and anxiousness never subsiding.

And now here he stood, standing at her door too afraid to knock like some pubescent boy asking a girl to the winter prom. Pathetic.

He quickly rapped on the door three times before he convinced himself to run in the other direction.

When she opened the door he made a conscious effort not to gasp or react.

She was wearing a black tank top with a large wool cardigan that was falling over one shoulder, revealing her cream colored skin. The dark jeans she wore fit her body nicely, no doubt Chelsea picked those for her. She always had a knack for fashion. Her hair was out of the two braids and flowed freely down like a waterfall. Caius was grateful he left it down, she looked gorgeous.

“Hi,” she said quietly.

Caius realized they both were standing there staring at each other with neither speaking for about two and a half minutes. He chastised himself for being so dense on their first meeting.

“Hello,” he replied quickly. “Are you ready to go?”

Bella nodded and turned to shut the door.

“Where would you like to go?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she said looking at him utterly petrified. “The library?”

Caius nodded and tried to smile at her in a friendly manner. She didn’t smile back.

They walked in silence for a few minutes and Caius hated it. He wanted to know what she was thinking but she was just staring at her feet as she walked.

“So you like to read?” he asked lamely. Small talk was never his strong suit. He usually would just tell people what was on his mind forwardly. He also never wooed a woman before, not even his now ex-wife.

“Yes,” she answered. “I’ve always enjoyed it.”

“You know after this you can just leave your room and go to the library on your own,” Caius said while trying his best to keep the bite out of his tone. “This is your home now. You can do as you wish.”

Bella answered in her infuriatingly shrug again and damn near made him punch a hole through the wall.

When they reached the library Caius opened the door for her and kept a close eye on her facial expression as she entered the massive room for the second time.

Her eyes widened and a small smile appeared on her face.

She walked over to one of the shelves that held the classic literature and she started thumbing through the spines, apparently looking for something particular.

“Anything I can help you find?” Caius asked appearing at her side in a fraction of a second.

Bella jumped and held her chest in a gasp.

“Apologies,” he said quickly. As if she needed to be more scared than she already was. “I keep forgetting how slow humans are.”

Bella’s eyes narrowed at him in irritation. He realized that the comment may have been taken as an offence. He thought it was quite comical that she was so easily annoyed.

“I can find it on my own, thanks,” she said dryly.

Her refusal for help just made Caius want to persist even more. “I can assure you, I helped stock these shelves. I can find it much faster than you.”

Bella sighed once and folded her arms across her chest. “Fine. I’m looking for Emily Brontë.”

Caius raised an eyebrow at her. “Wuthering Heights?” he asked.

She nodded and Caius went to the stack and found it instantly and handed it to her.

She snorted and snatched it from his hands and turned back to the shelf. She looked irritated that he was right and he couldn’t help but find her irritation funny. She was so small and looked like an angry kitten that thought it was a shark. He was learning so much about her and he loved every minute of it.

“So,” he said after a few minutes of silence. “You enjoy the classics then?”

“Yes,” she said curtly.

Caius frowned. He didn’t like that she wasn’t elaborating. “Aren’t most human teenagers interested in things like pop culture and boys?”

“Most human teenagers are idiots.”

Caius surprised himself by chuckling. He was absolutely ecstatic that she smiled back at him as well.

“You’re funny,” he observed.

Bella shrugged and continued looking through the books. She picked out three more books in the span of twenty-three minutes. He could see she was getting a little nervous with how he was openly gawking at her. But he could help but watch her as she contemplated the books she was choosing. When she finished she looked up at Caius expectantly. When he didn’t say anything she cocked her head to the side.

“I’m done,” she said quietly. “I can go back to my room now.”

“Why do you want to go back?” he snapped, annoyed she was already so willing to leave him and they hadn’t even spent a full hour with each other.

“I… uh…. Don’t really need to see anything else,” she mumbled.

“You don’t need to see anything else?” he repeated unbelievingly. “You are living in a castle that is ten times larger than the house you live in and you don’t need to see anything else at all?”

Bella shook her head. “I don’t _want_ to see anything else.”

Caius clenched his jaw. He had to actually count to ten to calm himself before he answered. 

“Why don’t you want to see anything else?”

Bella glared at him in annoyance. “_Because_ I don’t _want_ to be here.”

“Do you realize that Aro could have killed you and your little boyfriend had he not been so generous?”

“Oh yes, I am _so_ grateful for it,” she snapped sarcastically. “I’m stuck in a medieval castle with a bunch of creepy, ancient vampires who all murder people for sport. This is just like spring break for me.”

Caius felt his hands clench into fists. “How are we any different than that pathetic Cullen brat?”

“The Cullen’s don’t kill people, you do,” she said. “They also don’t go around murdering innocent werewolves either,” she added.

_So she did read the book on the 100-year war,_ he thought.

“Murdering?” Caius exclaimed. “We murdered no one. Those dogs hunted vampires down for simply being what they are. We had no problem with them until they decided to follow some primitive doctrine that predates even me that we were natural born enemies. They killed hundreds, if not thousands of vampires. I was even going to leave them until they went after me and my family. They damn near took my head off!”

“Oh that’s rich coming from a man that eats people without a second thought!” she said, trying to sound confident, but only succeeding in looking terrified.

Caius realized he was stepping forward and she was stepping back, but he didn’t care. He needed her to see reason and get out of the muddied waters that Edward had put her in.

“I will do anything to protect my family by any means necessary. The rest of the world can go to hell. And as for killing humans, we are what God, or whoever you believe in, made us. We do not try and fight nature. A lion eats a gazelle, you do not see it try and revert to grass. We do not eat more than what we need to sustain ourselves. We don’t heard humans like cattle. We could, if we wanted, but we don’t. The _Cullen’s_ are trying to fight nature. We embrace it.”

She had backed all the way up to the wall now. Her hands were braced behind her and her chest was heaving up and down. The shirt she wore exposed a lot more cleavage than the hideous sweater did. He wanted to burry his head in her exposed neck and nibble on her throat.

“You don’t know anything about them,” she snapped. “They are good people –”

“–Good people?!” Caius roared. “The Cullen brat left you in the middle of nowhere with a pack of angry vampires on your tail. He told you he loved you and threw you to the side like garbage. He tells you about vampires and turns your world upside down and then _left_. He let you get put in danger and now you are here. You’re right, he is _so_ gallant and chivalrous. He deserves a fucking medal for his affections towards you.”

Bella flinched and glared at him heatedly. Tears welled in her eyes and her jaw was set.

Caius didn’t feel bad to make her this upset. He wanted her to see the boy for what he truly was, even if it meant she would get hurt in the process. He knew she was strong; she could take it.

He saw her hand raise to slap him like it was slow motion. He let it happen. He wanted to let her be angry and not have the fake neutral tone that she had over the last week or so.

When her palm came in contact with his cheek, the sound echoed throughout the entire room.

She gasped in pain as he guessed it must’ve felt like slapping a large rock, but then her eyes went as big as saucers and she stared at him in a haze.

_“You see, child,” Aro explained to Bella as he showed her around the castle. “True Mates are not mated until they have skin on skin contact. The first touch is the most intense. They immideiatly bound to one another and they both know it. They can hear each others thoughts, feelings, they can see what the other’s desires are. It is quite an unexplainable feeling.” _

Caius knew immediately that they were now mated.


	5. Chapter 5

Caius couldn’t move, he couldn’t breath, it was as if he was floating through the air without a tether to hold him to earth.

He knew everything about her in a mere instant. He saw her entire short life flash right before his eyes. He saw her mother and father’s unhappy marriage, he saw her mother’s dissatisfaction with leaving her new husband on the road while she tended to her daughter, he saw Bella’s selflessness in choosing to live with her father, he saw her unhappiness in doing so, he saw her first kiss with Edward, he felt the love and then the inevitable heartbreak of being with the young vampire, he felt the warmth she felt towards her werewolf friend, he saw the reason behind her reaction to come to Volturra, and he felt her feelings towards Caius himself.

She was scared of him, but trusted him just as Marcus had mentioned. He saw himself through her eyes. She thought he was handsome, but terrifying. She was fascinated by him, especially when he whisked her away from Edward’s side the first day they met. She didn’t understand how she knew he would protect her at all costs. She felt safe and unsafe with him all at the same time. She was scared of her feelings towards him. She didn’t understand why she wanted to be around him, why she wanted to wrap her arms around his neck and hold herself to his chest. She even chastised herself over and over again in her room for feeling such a thing towards a killer. She thought she was going crazy for being so drawn to a man she only just met.

Caius knew she saw everything in him as well. He was slightly uncomfortable that she knew everything about him in such a short amount of time. He wasn’t used to being vulnerable. He knew she saw his conversations with Marcus when it came to their relationship. He knew she saw his love for her and the rate of intensity it was growing. He also knew she was finally aware of what True Mates really were and why Aro went into such detail with it when she first arrived.

Her bottom lip was quivering and her eyes were still full of unshed tears. “I’m here because of you,” she whispered. “I’m here because you wanted me here.”

Caius licked his lips and tried to speak but nothing came out.

“I was taken away because of this… this… thing… True Mates? Is – is that it?” she stammered.

Caius cleared his throat and took a step back to give her some space.

“Yes.”

Bella looked around the room as if trying to find something to focus on that wasn’t the vampire in front of her. Caius looked at the ground, ashamed and not sure of what to do.

“So I’m to be ponded off…” she whispered. “Like a…”

Caius’ head snapped up and he glared at her. She was thinking that she was being given to Caius as payment for Edward’s life, like a whore or prostitute.

“No,” he snapped. “Not like that.”

She looked up at him with tears beginning to roll down her cheeks. “Then what is it like?” she asked thickly.

Never in his life had he really cared about the spilt tears of anyone, even the people he “cared” about. When he saw Marcus as a mess when his wife died he thought he was being weak. He was angry that someone as prestigious and authoritative as a Volturi leader would at least put on a brave face. Instead he was wallowing in his room like a ninny.

He now understood what it meant to truly care for someone. He understood because it broke his heart to see her in such pain because of him. He wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and comfort her. He could feel her pain as if it was his own and he wanted it to go away.

“The bond is strong,” Caius began softly. “Neither of us would’ve been able to stay away if we let you leave –”

“–How do you know?” she sobbed.

“I know,” he said adamantly. “I saw the same thing happen to Marcus and Aro. Our souls are bound just as they were.”

Bella’s chest started to heave up and down faster. Her breathing was accelerated and heartbeat sounded like a hummingbird’s wings. Her eyes started darting from side to side and she started muttering under her breath, she looked completely disorientated.

“Bella, you need to calm down,” he whispered calmly.

Her breathing only accelerated and Caius knew she was having what humans called, a panic attack.

“Bella,” he said again. “Listen to me. Look at me.”

She started clutching her chest with her nails digging into the skin. Her tears continued to flow freely down her cheeks and when he heard a choked sob escape her lips he had had enough.

He took the remaining steps to her and he pulled her into his embrace. He had to watch himself as he didn’t want to hurt her, but he held her tightly (for a human) and rubbed his hand up and down her back. He felt her warm curves pressed against him and her tiny fingers clutching his robes as he held her.

Although he was sad that she was so upset, it was a relief to finally be able to touch her. He could feel her heart beating against him. He could actually feel her blood rapidly flowing in her veins. Her smell was even more intoxicating than it was a moment ago because she was so close. The heat radiating off her body was incredible. It was like his entire body was wrapped in a warm blanket. It was as if he was hurting his entire life and the pain was finally subsided.

He experimentally put his hand on the back of her head and stroked her long brown hair. It was just as soft as he thought it was going to be, if not softer. He also got a huge surge of her emotions and thoughts the moment he touched her skin.

_How can this be real? Oh my god, they think I am going to be sold off like some whore like some shitty medieval movie… What am I going to do? What about Charlie? And mom? Am I ever going to see them again? Oh god please… what if he kills them? And Jake! They know about Jake now! All those poor kids are going to die now, and its all my fault! What the fuck am I supposed to do here? Are they going to make me kill people? I don’t want to hurt anyone; I **will** **not** hurt anyone. He’s going to kill everyone, mom, dad, Jake, oh god, even Edward! He’s killed so many people… And you’re hugging him right now! You might as well be a whore! Look at you, you’re pathetic! Throwing yourself at the first man that pays you any mind since Edward. Oh my god my life is ruined… _

“No, Bella,” Caius whispered unbearably. “I wont touch any of them if do not wish me to. And I wont make you do anything you don’t want to do. True Mates’ only purpose is to care for the other. You are not just some concubine for my liking. You will not be mistreated here.”

Bella suddenly pushed herself off of him and tried to shove him away. Caius let her as he felt her sudden urge to get away from this situation. She wanted to run away and be alone, he knew this because he could feel it himself as if it were his own thoughts, just like True Mates.

Her face was red and wet. She quickly side stepped around him and sprinted to the door. He didn’t look behind him, he could only hear her faint footsteps getting quieter and quieter as she ran back to her room.

He stood there for what seemed like minutes, but was in fact hours. He couldn’t believe it happened this way. She found out through the worst possible circumstances. He wanted to woo her _before_ he told her. But now she knew, and she hated him for it. She thought he was a cad that just wanted a plaything. She thought he was going to kill everyone she loved simply because he could. She thought he was a monster.

“Ahem…”

Caius turned in surprise as he didn’t hear anyone approach the library door.

“I don’t think I’ve been able to sneak up on you since the Schmalkaldic War,” Aro chuckled gliding over to him.

“Leave me alone,” Caius growled.

Aro sighed and took Caius’ hand to see what had happened. His eyes glazed over for a moment and he removed his hand after a fraction of second.

Caius was always amazed that he could see so much in such a brief touch.

To his surprise the older vampire started laughing and shaking his head. “I can’t believe she slapped you!”

“I wish to be alone, Aro,” he snarled again.

Aro shook his head again. “No you don’t. You want to be with Bella.” He walked over to the book case Bella was just at and began idly touching the spines.

“You know she feels the same way about you. You both are just too stubborn to do anything about it.”

Caius folded his arms across his chest angrily. “I did do something about it and she rejected me.”

“Give the child some time. She will see the error in her ways,” Aro said wistfully.

“How do you know?” Caius growled. “You cant read her thoughts. I can, and she hates me. She thinks I’m an evil vampire and the Cullen boy is a patron saint.”

Aro chuckled again and finally turned to face Caius. “No she doesn’t. She’s just upset because she has no say in her feelings to you because of the bond. That’s just your jealousy talking.”

“I am not jealous!” Caius roared.

Aro laughed giddily again before turning to leave the library. “You are. And I have to say it is delightful to see. You were always so headstrong and so focussed. Its nice to see this side of you finally come out. This were getting so boring around here.”

Caius snatched an encyclopedia off the shelf and hurled it at Aro, but the door to library was already closed, leaving Caius alone and unsure of what his next move was to be. 


	6. Chapter 6

Caius saw Bella three days later. He decided to honour her wishes and give her space. However today he had had enough.

Every night he could feel her even though she was far away. He could feel her panic, anger, loneliness, confusion, and sadness everyday, she was just a slew of emotions. He could feel her dread for the day as soon as she woke up and felt the unwanted sense of longing to be near him everyday.

The first day she decided she was going to ignore and reject her feelings towards him. That lasted all of three hours before she broke down into tears.

The next day she wallowed in self pity. She simply sat on the floor and picked at the stones with her nails until she bled.

Caius of course sat in his room and felt her. That was all he really could do. He couldn’t be near her, but he could at least feel and hear her thoughts. He knew of course that she was aware of his presence. No doubt she felt his concern and worry when it came to her. He wondered if she cared or even appreciated it.

On the third day he was done ignoring this problem. He was not a man to just sit and wallow. He was not a man that would shy away from conflict or hard circumstances. He was done with this idiocy.

The moment he decided this he could feel Bella on the other end begin to panic. He knew she could feel his resolve and could feel that he was coming to her room.

_Go away, I don’t want to talk to you_, she thought furiously.

Caius actually jumped when he heard her voice in his head. He wasn’t aware that True Mates could communicate through the mind without touch. He would have to tell Aro about this new development for the records.

_You can’t ignore this forever_, Caius thought back.

_Watch me,_ she thought wilfully.

“You’re being a stubborn child. I am coming to see you and _you will_ speak with me about this. In case you were too selfish to notice, my life has been turned upside down as well as yours,” he growled out loud.

Her mind immediately went quiet as her guilt set in. He could hear her chastise herself in her head for being so rude and not thinking of other people.

Another thing he realized about her was that she was hard on herself. Too hard in his opinion. On top of that her mind seemed to only think of other people and how her actions affected that. She was obsessed with her family’s safety and he knew she was anxious with what would happen to them.

The bond was getting stronger and stronger as he got physically close to her room. When he got to her door he didn’t bother knocking, he just let himself in.

_No point_, he thought. _She can feel that I’m here_.

When he saw her she was sitting cross legged on the bench in front of the window. When she saw him enter she hugged her knees up to her chest, seemingly wanting to take up less space.

She was wearing tights and that blasted oversized sweater that hid her body from him.

Bella’s eyes snapped up at him crossly.

He realized that she could hear and feel was he was thinking and he was immediately embarrassed. He didn’t like that she could feel his desire for her. But he did like that she was focussing on his thoughts to know what he was thinking.

Caius sat next to her on the bench and waited for her to say something. He wanted to badly to touch her again, but he thought better of it.

“We need to discuss what we want to do about all this,” he said after a few minutes of her stubbornly not speaking.

“All what?” she said indignantly.

He sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You know what.”

Bella snorted and turned to look out the window, pressing her cheek against her knees.

“You’re tired,” Caius observed.

“No I’m not,” she snapped defiantly.

Caius sighed again and leaned back against the wall.

He was tired. He didn’t want to fight with her anymore but she was just as stubborn as a mule and it was getting to him. He was used to physical violence to get his way. He had no idea how to navigate around a woman’s feelings.

“I don’t know what you want from me,” Bella mumbled finally. “You only want me because of the bond thingy. We otherwise never would’ve even taken a second look at each other.”

“I know,” he said.

“Then why are you hell-bent on trying to make me be with you?”

Caius sighed and looked her up and down before he spoke. “You saw my memories. You saw what happened to Marcus when he tried to ignore his feelings for his soon to be bride. It nearly drove them both to madness. It was just easier when they both agreed to be together.”

Bella sighed and looked back out the window. “I don’t like being told what to do,” she mumbled under her breath.

“Me either,” Caius replied.

“So, what do you want to do?”

“I have no idea, that’s why I’m here.”

Caius could feel Bella’s shock through the bond. She thought he would demand that she be with him and force her into a marriage. She never thought he cared about her opinion.

“The fuck kind of a man do you think I am?” Caius snarled. “Just because I’m old doesn’t mean I am stuck in some kind of primitive social norms.”

“I just thought –”

“–You just thought I was some pig that wants a submissive woman, is that it?”

Bella surprised him by laughing once. She started shaking her head in disbelief. “You have a bad temper, don’t you?”

Caius snorted and smoothed out the front of his shirt, trying to distract himself from the way it felt to make her laugh.

“I’ve been accused of such before,” he replied dryly.

When he looked up at her she had a small smile playing on her lips.

“So what do you want to do?” she asked again.

Caius sighed heavily and looked at her deeply. “What if we spend time getting to know each other? That way we can see what this… thing is all about.”

Bella chewed on her bottom lip for a few seconds before she finally slowly nodded.

Caius couldn’t believe the relief that washed over both of them in the same instant. He was happy that she was happy with this solution. He was also taken aback with how quickly she became worried all over again.

_Human emotions are so complicated_, he thought.

“What’s going to happen to my family?” she demanded.

Caius glared at her in annoyance. “I told you before. No harm will come to them.” He then stood and began doing up the buttons of his cardigan. “I am not the monster you read about in that text I gave you. I don’t kill people for sport, I kill them for survival. And, although it would give me nothing but pleasure, I will not kill Jacob and his dirty little pack of friends.”

“If you’re not evil then why would killing a bunch of children give you pleasure?” she accused.

Caius folded his arms across his chest. “Because they are close to your father and if they kill him by accident then you would be upset.”

Bella blinked at him, completely taken off guard by his statement.

_Good_, he thought. _She is such a smartass. Sometimes it’s nice to have her reeling instead of me_.

“Now,” he said leaning down to offer her his hand. “You haven’t ever been to Italy and Volturra is a beautiful city. I hear the food is good and you haven’t eaten in five hours.”

Bella stared at his outstretched hand blankly for three heartbeats before she finally sighed and took it.

Caius gasped with the sudden wave of emotions and thoughts coming from Bella’s mind. He thought their connection was strong, but when they touched it increased tenfold.

_Oh my God, what are we going to do? Is this a date? Is he just going to watch me eat like Edward did? How long are we going to be away? Charlie must be worried about me, I wonder if I should call him, I wonder if they’ll _let_ me call him…_

The thoughts stopped when Bella let go of his hand. She also looked shocked and dismayed at the sudden hit as well. 

“You… uh… can call Charlie if you wish. I’ve told you before that you are not my prisoner. I want you to know that.”

“Stop reading my thoughts!” she exclaimed angrily.

Caius chuckled and folded his arms across his chest. “And how, pray tell, am I supposed to do that? You started this mess when you slapped me.”

Bella scoffed and walked right passed him. He could feel that she was annoyed, but also somewhat amused by the banter they were having.

She quickly wretched the door open and stood off to the side. “Get out. I need to change before we leave.”

**XXX**

Within ten minutes they were in the car and on their way to the city. Caius had no idea how this happened but he was grateful for it. He wanted to get to know her and it was a relief to finally be closer to her, even if it was just proximity closeness.

When they arrived to the restaurant Bella ordered and Caius did not. He knew he was staring at her, but he didn’t care. He had been deprived of seeing her for so long that he wanted to get every second in that he could.

“So…” Bella said tapping the table nervously. He could see she was getting uncomfortable with his staring.

“What do you do for fun?” Caius asked.

Bella stared at him for a moment before she burst out laughing. Caius couldn’t help the smile and chuckle that followed as well.

“You already know everything about me,” she said. “You already know what I do for fun.”

“Yes,” Caius concurred. “Riding motorcycles and jumping off cliffs with young werewolves. Seems a little odd that such a stable girl would do so many reckless things.”

Bella shrugged and started picking at the tablecloth.

“So you agree that it was reckless?” he asked.

“Yes. But it served its purpose,” she mumbled quietly.

Caius ground his teeth together and had to stop himself from flipping the table over. “The purpose being so you could hallucinate imageries of that _boy_?”

“Can you calm down?” she asked wincing. “Your anger is always so powerful. It makes me dizzy.”

Caius’ eyebrows shot up. “You feel that?” he asked.

Bella rolled her eyes at him and looked at him like he just said the dumbest thing she’d ever heard. “Obviously. You feel everything that I do, why wouldn’t it be the same for me?”

Caius sighed and folded his arms across his chest. “I don’t know. I’m not used to… all of this.”

Bella nodded in agreement.

“You saw my memories of the 100-year war?” Caius asked suddenly.

Bella nodded again.

“Then you understand my motive for killing all those werewolves?”

Bella sighed and bit her lip. She looked pained for a moment before she answered. “Yes, I get it now.”

He cocked his eyebrow at her and waited for her to elaborate.

“I understand that the wolves can be stuck in old traditions. But they are good people. They don’t deserve to die. They didn’t choose to be what they were the same way you didn’t get a choice. The wolves in Forks are not deliberately going after your kind to wage a war. They are just protecting their lands,” she finished.

Caius leaned forward and leaned his elbows on the table. “Yes, and that’s the only reason why I’m not ordering my men to put their heads on spikes as we speak.”

“Jesus,” Bella muttered. “Do you always have to be so violent?”

Caius chuckled and leaned back in his seat. “Yes. In case you haven’t noticed I have a knack for that kind of thing.”

They spent the rest of the day walking around the city. Caius showed her every spot he thought she might find interesting and was rewarded with a smile or a look of awe. He found himself growing more and more giddy at each location because that meant he got to see her face light up. He couldn’t believe he found it so entertaining, but every time she saw a castle or historical sight, he practically laughed in elation.

He decided to put an end to the day when he saw her yawn for the fourth time. She insisted she wasn’t tired, but he could feel her exestuation through the bond.

He did have an idea when they reached her bedroom door though. As soon as he thought of it Bella’s eyes went wide and her mouth dropped.

“No way,” she said before he could even ask.

“Why not?”

“Because.”

“That’s not a reason.”

She sighed and rubbed her forehead. “Why are you trying to move so fast?”

Caius looked at her as if she had three heads. “I’m asking to touch your hand, Bella. It’s not a marriage proposal,” he said exasperated.

“It’s more than that and you know it,” she snapped. “Why do you need to feel everything I do and read even further into my thoughts?”

Caius looked at her seriously. He did not want his point to be misconstrued as it seemed like everything did in her odd mind.

“Because if this is going where I think it is then I want to see what happens when we touch. I don’t like to be taken by surprise by anything, especially my… feelings… towards you.” he said. The mere fact he said ‘his feelings’ would haunt him for a long time.

Bella gripped the door handle tighter and bit her lip, contemplating his proposal. After 5 heartbeats she finally gave a slow nod.

Caius wasted no time in grabbing her hand and promptly lacing his fingers with her own. He heard Bella gasp at the sudden crash of emotions and thoughts but she only gripped his hand tighter, which made him way happier than what he was willing to admit.

He felt everything, her nervousness, her excitement, her dread, all of it. He knew she could feel his as well. He also knew she could feel his yearning to kiss her.

As soon as she comprehended that he wanted to kiss her she instantly wanted him to do it. He saw her eyes dart to his lips and back up to his eyes.

Caius swallowed loudly and began to lean down. His body moving without informing his mind what it was doing. He was approximately two millimeters away from her lips when he heard Felix’s heavy footsteps coming down from the south hallway.

Because he was still connected with Bella she also knew what was happening even if her human ears couldn’t detect it. She went to pull her hand from his but Caius did not allow her to leave him just yet.

“Don’t,” Caius growled at her.

_Felix is not going to ruin this for me,_ he thought.

_Do you really want him walking in on us making out in the hallway?_ She thought back at him.

Caius growled and finally released her hand.

_I’m going to kill him,_ he thought before lunging at the younger vampire.


	7. Chapter 7

Caius was sitting on the corner of his bed, livid and aggravated that he was now stuck in his room, alone, again.

After Felix had interrupted his kiss with Bella, he took it upon himself to lunge at him in retaliation. Felix didn’t even seem to know what was going on until Caius had him pinned on the floor. Caius then proceeded to slam the younger vampire’s head into the stone floor until one of the other guards pulled him off of him.

And here he sat, for the last two days.

He could feel Bella through the bond and it irritated him to no end that he couldn’t speak to her. It was like she was here, right next to him, but not really. He felt Bella when she finally fell asleep that night after tossing and turning for several hours. The next day he felt it when she woke and was pleasantly surprised when she decided to go to the library on her own.

He wanted to join her but thought better of it. He thought he should give her a break from having his constantly pining over her.

He thought back to their almost kiss. God, all he wanted was to hold her hand. He reprimanded himself for being so forward. He should have let things happen at their own pace rather than pouncing on her like some horny teenager.

_Caius_, Bella called out through the bond.

Caius sprang from his seat and focussed on her completely. He couldn’t understand what her intentions were in calling him, nor did he care really.

_There’s a strong overcast today_, she thought._ Would you want to show me more parts of Voltura? _

_I’ll be down in three minutes_, he thought quickly back at her.

In two and half minutes he changed into pedestrian clothing, fixed his hair that had gone wild from him pulling at it in frustration, and was waiting outside her bedroom door staring at his watch.

“Stopping tapping your foot and just come in!” Bella called out from the other side of the door.

Caius rolled his eyes at his behavior but did as she asked.

She was wearing jeans and a tight long sleeve shirt. Her hair was back in the two thick braids that dangled by her ears. He could see she was not wearing any makeup and he rejoiced. He thought any markings on her face would diminish her beauty.

“Apologies,” Caius said. “I thought it would take me longer to get ready.”

Bella shrugged and grabbed a leather jacket from the back of a chair.

When she put it on Caius thought she transformed from being beautiful, to being exceptionally sexy. He never really used the word before when describing any woman really. He was never the type. Even his wife was never sexy. It seemed his only concern over the decades was war and tactical research. He never cared about women or wealth or sex. All he wanted was more experience in combat. But right now, he wanted her in his bed, wearing nothing but a smile.

When he saw Bella’s face begin to turn from the milk colored it normally was, to the color of a lobster, he knew she heard every thought he just had.

“I… er… we should get going,” he stumbled.

Bella nodded quickly and followed him out the doors to his car.

The ride was similar to the first, quiet and tense. He thought he should crack a joke or say something, anything really, but he couldn’t think of anything. He wanted her to be comfortable around him but he was failing miserably.

“You shouldn’t have attacked Felix like that,” she said after ten minutes of silence. “That wasn’t nice.”

Caius snorted in rebuttal. “He was being an immature child as he always has been. He needs to learn his place in the guard.”

“Doesn’t give you the right to assault him like that,” she retorted.

“Why’s that?” he asked turning the corner to veer outside the city limits. “He’s under our supervision. I can do anything I want.”

Bella scoffed and glared out the window.

“What?” Caius snarled. He was sick of her judgmental attitude towards his behaviour. Who was she to make moral decrees? She was only 17! She didn’t know anything.

“Just because I’m 17 doesn’t mean I’m wrong,” she snapped, reading his thoughts. “He’s a person. You can’t be mean to everyone that you don’t care for. Besides, that’s how mutinies happen.”

Caius barked out a laugh, surprising himself. “I see. So it’s not his precious feelings you care for? It’s the prospect of me losing my power that sets you off?”

“What? No!” she exclaimed.

“Rest assured, little one,” he chuckled. “No would dare even think about stealing my position in the Volturi. Not unless they desired to be tortured and then burned alive for such treasonous actions.”

Bella sighed in annoyance but otherwise didn’t say anything.

Suddenly she sat forward and looked over her shoulder and then back at Caius.

“Where are you going?” she screeched. “The city’s back that way!”

Caius smiled and changed gears to drive faster. “I’m taking you to my favorite spot outside the city.”

“Slow down!” she yelled.

Caius just chuckled and proceeded to drive even faster. She was gripping the dashboard with both hands so tight her knuckles were turning white. Her eyes were wide and he could hear her heart hammering in her chest.

“Relax, little one,” he said. “Even if we do get into an accident I can protect you.”

Bella snorted in disbelief. “Edward didn’t drive fast. He said I would get hurt if the car got wrapped around the tree like a pretzel.”

“Your little boyfriend didn’t know anything,” Caius snarled. “He was just saying that to appease you and make himself seem gallant. He’s more of a monster then most of the people in that castle behind us.”

Bella didn’t answer. It didn’t even look as though she heard him. She just continued to grip the car with a look of pure fear.

When they finally made it up the hill he pulled off to the shoulder of road and turned off his car. He could still hear her heart hammering in her chest loudly. She was clearly still a little unnerved from the car ride, but otherwise looked fine.

“Ready?” he asked while unbuckling his seatbelt.

Bella answered by getting out of the car and slamming the door.

Caius sighed and got out of the car to join her.

He could sense her fear mixed with her distaste for surprises. She looked like she was wound up, taught like the strings of a guitar, ready to snap at any moment.

He knew she was still so confused of what was to become of her and their relationship. He didn’t really know either.

“Ah,” he said reaching the edge of the cliff. “Here we are.”

Bella’s eyes went wide and her mouth fell open, making Caius’ heart soar.

He first found this cliff over three decades ago. He was fighting some army of some kind and after the blood had been spilt, he spent all day basking in the sun and death.

The cliff overlooked Voltura and the vast countryside that accompanied it. Vineyards and cattle ranches stretched as far as the human eye could see. The sun was still setting and cast a yellow hue over the surrounding villages.

Bella’s pale skin was glowing. Her eyes were sparkling just like a vampire’s skin did in the sun. He wished he could take a picture of how beautiful she looked. He wanted her in so many ways right at this moment, but he could scare her away.

Bella was like a frightened bird, ready to fly away if anyone got too close. He wanted her to want him, freely and without the power of whatever bond they shared. He knew he could just turn her right now and the ferocity of the bond would increase for her. He knew the moment her eyes would open from the three days of astonishing pain; she would immediately feel what he did for her right now. But he didn’t want that. He wanted her to come to him on her own volition. He would never force her into anything she didn’t want to do. Not now. Not ever.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered.

“Si,” he whispered back, staring at her.

He saw her face turn that adorable shade of pink again and he realized he still hadn’t lifted his gaze from her yet.

He also saw that she was refusing to look at him out of sheer discomfiture. He knew she didn’t like to be the centre of attention, but she was the only thing lately that seemed to _get_ his attention.

Bella quickly folded her arms across her chest and looked at her feet.

“Don’t you have better things to be doing than showing teenage girls sunsets?” she mumbled. “I’m sure Aro thinks you’ve been neglecting your duties as head of the guard.”

Caius chuckled and finally reverted his gaze away from her.

_Does she want me to stop courting her? _He thought.

“Yes, well, he understands this situation and its complexities more than anyone. He and his wife share the same bond we do,” he responded.

“They do?” she asked, seemingly intrigued.

Caius nodded but did not elaborate. He thought it unruly to speak about another person’s experience without their knowledge, especially such a personal one.

“Do you want to leave?” Caius asked after she yawned.

Bella shook her head and simply sat down cross-legged on the ground.

“What are you doing?”

“Sitting.”

“But the ground is dirty.”

Bella burst out laughing and looked up at him humorously. “You’re a big bad scary vampire that has defeated over a dozen armies and you’re scared of dirt?”

Caius snorted and sat down next to her. “I am not scared of dirt,” he muttered.

Bella smiled and just continued to look out to the village.

“What do you even do in the guard anyways?” Bella asked.

“I am responsible for the punishment of those who breaks our laws, the army’s commandment, and overall ruling of the vampire race,” he answered robotically.

“Tough gig,” Bella quipped.

“Indeed,” Caius chuckled.

“Do you like it?” she asked after some time.

“Like what?”

“Do you like being in charge of all the vampires around the world?” she clarified.

Caius thought about it for a minute before he answered. He didn’t know really. No one’s ever asked him that before.

“I suppose I do, yes,” he said finally. “I do find it gets restless going through the same motions from day to day. But that changed a few weeks ago.”

Bella bit her bottom lip and pulled her knees to her chest. He made her uncomfortable with his admission. He wished he could comfort her.

They sat there for about two hours. Caius heard her yawn at least five times before she said she was ready to leave.

When they arrived back at the castle Caius saw that she was fast asleep in the passenger’s seat. Not wanting to wake her from sleep she obviously needed, he gently lifted her into his arms and carried her bridal style to her room. When he reached her door he easily held her up with on arm while the other reached for the latch.

He tucked her into her bed and for a moment let his knuckles run across her cheekbone. Her skin was so soft and smooth. It was like touching percaline. He wondered if the rest of her body was just as smooth as this was.

“Caius,” she hummed.

Caius froze and waited for the onslaught of rejection, but she didn’t move. Her eyes were still closed and her heartbeat was just as steady as it was before.

He realized that she was just talking in her sleep.

Caius stood straight and made his way to the door. Absolutely ecstatic that she was dreaming about his presence.

He vowed that their next date he would try to find a way to touch her again. But this time, she would be awake.


	8. Chapter 8

Caius waited impatiently in the foyer for Bella to finish changing.

For the past week he and Bella spent the afternoon together. If there was a heavy overcast, they would visit the town and/or Caius’ spot. If it was sunny outside they usually stayed in the library and read next to each other.

He would begin and end his day thinking about her. When he would leave her after the mere few hours he had with her he would wait by his window, listening for any bad dreams she may encounter. When she woke, he would wait anxiously until he felt her boredom creep up, and would run to her door to accompany her for the day.

He was ecstatic that when she opened the door he felt her flood of happiness. He tried to forget that her emotions were being controlled by this bond. He tried to forget that she was only happy because of some odd spell that was cast upon them, rather than her real, true feelings.

He tried to forget, but usually same up unsuccessful.

For the last week he and Bella had been getting along fine. They never touched, never held hands, but he could still _feel_ her within him.

He wanted her to be the one to instigate their next encounter. He didn’t want to push her at all. He realized that touching her without her consent days ago was rude and piggish. Even if he did only touch her cheek, it was still appalling.

When she rounded the corner of the foyer Caius had to hold his breath. Her hair was still wet from the shower she took minutes ago. Her aroma had increased tenfold. He realized that Chelsea must’ve picked the soap based on Bella’s existing scent.

_Conniving, metalling, little witch_, he thought.

Chelsea always had her nose in a romance novel of some kind. She always wanted everyone to find true love, even thought he used to think it was ridiculous. Now he wasn’t so sure.

“You look beautiful,” Caius said.

Bella’s face turned the gorgeous shade of pink and she simply nodded in response.

“What’s the plan today?” she asked.

“Whatever you want. It’s nice out, we can leave again if you wish,” he replied.

Bella rolled her eyes in response. “I _always_ pick. It’s your turn.”

Caius licked his lips and tried to think.

Over the course of the last month he learned more and more about Bella’s personality. He learned she was an old soul trapped in a teenage human’s body. She was not like the other girls he met in the streets. She liked classic novels and music. She seemed to have a distaste to everything modern, which Caius enjoyed. He was happy that she was this way. He would have no idea what to do if he bonded with a mate who enjoyed boy bands and modern technology.

“How about I take you to the gardens? You can take your book with you. I know you wanted to learn more about the war with the coven from Prague,” Caius offered.

Bella raised an eyebrow and then began walking to the door.

“Why would I need a book if I can just learn it from you?” she said. “You’re the main one they reference as leading the war anyways.”

Caius followed her out her room and into the hallway. They walked side by side and Caius wanted so badly to grab her hand, just to feel her warm skin on his would be the highlight of his week.

_You’ve taken down werewolves, and armies of vampires, but this little girl is making your legs shake? Pathetic._ He thought.

When they reached the gardens Bella sat down on the closest bench to the gate. Caius sat down next to her and they basked in the warmth of the day in silence. He was fine to sit in silence. Just being in her presence was exciting for him.

Bella moved her hand and accidently brushed against Caius’s in doing so.

_What are you doing here with him? You know he doesn’t **actually** like you, so you should stop obsessing over him like you did with Edward. You’re a needy, pathetic teenager. He’s just being nice and you’re spinning ideas in your stupid little head. You should have just stayed with Jake. At least you knew he loved you. _

Caius actually jumped at the harshness of her thoughts. He didn’t expect her to be so mean towards herself when she seemed to exude utter kindness to everyone else around her. 

He also growled at hearing the hairy mongrel’s name, and her suggestion to be with him in her thoughts. 

“No, you _should not_ have stayed with that inbred mutt,” Caius snarled. “He was a child who wanted you to be something you weren’t. He just wanted a patient to fix.”

“He is not an inbred!” Bella gasped.

“Might as well be,” Caius huffed trying to get his temper under control. “These men you had in your life are all... Ragazzo idioti,” he muttered under his breath.

Bella sighed and rubbed her forehead with her fingers. She looked exasperated with his outburst.

“You know, you really need to control your temper,” she said finally.

“I know,” he mumbled. “And you’re not a needy teenager. I have been thinking about nothing but you since you got here,” he grumbled just as quietly.

Bella huffed and folded her arms across her chest. “I really wish you couldn’t read my thoughts. It’s an invasion of privacy.”

Caius gawked at her for a moment before he could answer her. “And you think the same doesn’t go for me? I hardly enjoy Aro intruding my mind. I don’t need another to be doing the same.”

Bella bit her lip and finally looked him the eye. “Sorry,” she said quietly.

“It’s fine,” Caius harrumphed.

They sat there in an awkward silence for a few minutes before she finally turned towards him. “Well? Are you going to tell me about Prague or not?”

Caius couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped his lips. He liked that she had some fire to her. She seemed so meek and shy when he first met her. He was happy that she was comfortable enough around him that she could be herself.

“What would you like to know?” he asked.

“Everything,” she answered. “The history books make you sound like an evil beast that crept up on them in the shadows of the night.”

Caius chuckled again. “Hardly. We were tasked with killing the coven and their people. It was more of an arm infantry raid, but with vampires. It hardly warrants me being depicted as an evil beast.”

“Did you just kill them because they created a coven so big? Or for enslaving a town of humans?”

“Both. The neighbouring towns were starting to talk, as one can imagine. They knew that the town over was incarcerated by magical beings who drank blood to stay alive. They knew of the identities of the vampires. They wanted to create a mob to take the town back by force. That was good enough for us,” Caius explained.

“So you killed all the vampires?” Bella asked.

“No,” Caius answered sharply. “They were _sentenced_ to die by _Aro_. The leader, Maximus, was brought back to the Volturi for sentencing. Aro wanted to make an example of him.”

“What did you do with him?” Bella asked, completely lost in the story.

“You know what we did to him. You read it in the historical text I gave you,” Caius sighed.

“Yes, but I want to hear what happened from someone who was actually there,” she retorted.

Caius cracked his neck on both sides. It was a human habit that he somehow kept from all these years, even if it did nothing now.

“Aro ordered Felix and myself to rip off all his limbs and throw him into the dungeons. He had to put himself back together. He is tortured daily and is only given a fraction of blood once a month to keep him weak and feeble.”

Bella’s jaw actually dropped for a moment. “Is he still down there?” she asked after she composed herself.

“Yes.”

Caius saw that her eyes were wide and memorized. She looked speechless. Although, Caius thought she looked humorous.

“Close your mouth, little one. Or you’ll catch flies.”

Bella scoffed and looked forward at the roses that were in full bloom. “Wow. Aro must’ve been really mad.”

“Yes. He hates it when our vampire identity has been given out freely. The only reason he hasn’t sentenced the Cullen’s is because of me,” Caius stated.

“Why did you do that?” Bella asked.

“Because it would upset you if I skinned that little boy alive.”

Bella looked at him as if he had three heads for a moment before she turned right back to the roses.

“Thank-you,” she mumbled quietly.

Caius simply nodded.

“You know,” he said after some time. “You could’ve just learned all this if you touched me and asked me about it.”

“Yes, but then we would be sitting here in silence even longer,” she said.

“Am I boring you?’ he asked, concerned.

Bella shook her head. “No, its way more interesting hearing you talk about what happened rather than reading about them. You’re a good story-teller.”

If Caius was still human, he would’ve blushed. He liked that she liked hearing him talk. Even if it was just about the gruesome things he did.

“Can I meet him?” Bella asked suddenly.

“Who?”

“Maximus. The leader of the Prague rebellion.”

“Absolutely not!” Caius barked. He looked at her like she had gone mad.

Bella looked somewhat shocked, but not scared. He was happy that she had at least gotten over her fear of him.

“Why not?” she whined.

“Because!” Caius exclaimed. “If he saw even one weakness in our guard he would remember it forever.”

Bella just stared at him, completely confused.

Caius sighed and chided himself for being so stupid. Of course she didn’t understand the gravity of her request. She was an innocent human before all this happened. She would not understand the chess game that needed to be played when dealing with enemies.

“If, and that is a big if, but if he somehow escapes he would run straight to you to use you as leverage. He isn’t even aware of Aro’s wife. That’s why the wives stay in the towers,” he explained calmly.

“Oh,” Bella said. “But not for much longer right? I mean, that’s the plan? To turn me?”

Caius looked deeply into her eyes before answering. He wanted to get through to her that she was not just his pet.

“You can choose whatever you want. You are not going to be forced into anything you don’t want to do.”

“Except be imprisoned here,” she snapped back at him.

“That was Aro’s deal. Not mine. I have no pull with that. You can take it up with him,” he growled.

“So I am a prisoner?” she asked angrily.

“You made the deal, Bella. You have to live with the consequences,” he retorted.

He knew her well enough now that she didn’t need to be coddled. She was grown up enough to understand the harsh truths of the world. 

“Besides,” he added. “If you could leave, would you?”

Bella folded her arms across her chest a chose not to answer. He could feel her embarrassment and annoyance flow through her. He could tell without reading her thoughts that she was mortified that he knew she didn’t want to leave him.

That made him very, very, happy.

They sat there in silence again for a few minutes before he suddenly felt her urge to touch his hand again.

Caius didn’t even offer a response. He simply held out his open palm and she laced her fingers with his again. It was like they were both in a finely rehearsed dance that they had been studying for weeks. Like they both knew exactly what the others move was before they made it.

He gasped at the sudden onslaught of emotions and thoughts just as he had the first time. It was like a tornado of thoughts that were not his own. He couldn’t describe it.

He groaned when he heard her yearning for him to kiss her. He wanted to so badly, but he didn’t want the force of the bond to be the deciding factor.

“Bella,” he whispered. “Do not ask me if you aren’t sure.”

_I’m sure_, she thought back at him.

Caius leaned down, quite a way because she was so small, and pressed his lips lightly to her own.

He heard her adorable squeak before she put her hands on either side of his neck. One of his hands rested on her thigh while the other moved to her hair, running his fingers through it. The long auburn tresses were just as soft as he thought they were. His eyes were closed and his breath increased without his consent to do so. He could hear her heart beat erratically in her chest. She was warm, if not a little hot to the touch.

Her mind was running a mile a minute. A part of her wanted to crawl into his lap and deepen the kiss, that made him growl in response, and another part of her was screaming that this was insanity because they only just met.

He felt her gently pushing him off before he pulled away entirely so she could breath. Caius couldn’t help but growl again as he swooped down and began kissing her neck, refusing to stop touching her.

She gasped again as she felt his cool lips on her sensitive skin. He could also hear her thoughts that if he stopped she would kill him.

He could feel the blood racing in her veins and the need to possessively mark her as his own was overwhelming. He wanted to bite her.

She jumped when she heard that thought. He immediately pulled away when he realized that he scared her. He moved his hands away from her to give her some space as he knew this was all quite fast for her.

She looked at him with wide-eyes. She looked petrified.

“Bella,” he whispered. “I…”

Bella quickly shot up out of her seat and mumbled something about being tired. Shen then practically ran to the gates back towards the castle.

“Fuck!” Caius yelled while simultaneously destroying the concrete bench they were just occupying.


	9. Chapter 9

Caius was pacing Aro’s room again. He was annoyed that he was taking so long in meeting him. What else was he doing anyway?

Since he kissed Bella he couldn’t think of anything but just that since, he wanted to tell her what his need for biting her meant. He wanted to explain that he wasn’t the blood-crazed monster that she first took him for. He wanted all this, but he could not muster the courage to tell her. He was ashamed of his actions and he wished he could take back his violent thoughts.

“I think this is the first time I’ve kept you waiting and it actually bothered you,” Aro quipped from behind him.

“Where have you been?” Caius snarled. “I’ve been waiting here for well over our pre-scheduled appointment!”

Aro dangerously glided over to him while giving him a very cautious stare. Caius knew that he stepped over the line as soon as the words escaped his lips. Sometimes Aro could truly be a brother and sometimes it slipped Caius’ mind that he was still his commanding officer.

Aro stretched out his hand a gripped Caius’ wrist to read Caius’ thoughts. It lasted such a brief moment that had Caius not been a vampire, he would not have even felt the touch.

“You’re stressed because your little human is scared of you. That doesn’t warrant you to treat me like you do your lackies.”

Caius nodded and bowed in apology.

Aro slipped passed him and entered his room, motioning for Caius to follow him. He took off his robe and threw it onto the bed and turned to evaluate Caius.

“You look positively dreadful; you know that?” Aro said with a wide smile.

“You know that I hardly find this amusing,” Caius growled.

“You’re upset because she makes you feel weak,” Aro observed.

Caius didn’t respond. He couldn’t think of any retort other than calling Aro some unmentionable names.

“You have nothing to worry about. Mates make us stronger. It gives us more purpose in this extraordinary long life we have here. They make us want to stay on earth so we have time to love them,” he explained.

Caius snorted in response.

Aro sighed and folded his arms across his chest. “It’s about time you stop running from her every time you scare her too, Caius. Humans are skittish, and she is no exception. You will have to explain what happened.” Aro walked over to his vanity and began loosening his collar.

“Besides, sooner or later you’re going to bite her anyways as I doubt you would let anyone else touch her.”

Caius let out an involuntary growl. He would most certainly _not_ let anyone else turn her. No chance in hell. 

Aro turned his head and raised an eyebrow in amusement. “I also must say, it is utterly entertaining that you have lost all that restrain and control you’ve gained over the years.”

“Good-bye, Aro,” Caius growled as he turned and left.

He was hoping Aro would give some better advice than he did. But alas, he was just as useless as Caius was. 

_Why can’t she just see what I feel? Every time I try to explain myself to her she just ends up running away_, he thought angrily.

That was when it clicked for him. He could show her everything so it would not be misconstrued.

He practically sprinted to her door when he realized that. He would show her everything that she was not understanding. He would show her, even if she didn’t like it.

Caius rapped on her door three times. He could feel their bond was getting stronger and stronger as he approached. He heard her gasp on the other side of the door but otherwise was holding her breath. He also realized that she would probably be getting ready for bed at this moment as it was passed 10:00PM.

_It is ridiculous to think that you can pretend you’re not home_, he thought at her.

_This is **not** my home._

_Open the door. _

_Leave me alone!_ She shouted in her mind. _Everything gets all confusing and muddled when I’m around you. This bond is not binding. _

“It is binding,” he called through the door.

When she didn’t answer he huffed in irritation. “So fucking stubborn,” he muttered under his breath. “Bella!” he yelled. “You either open this fucking door or I’ll shatter it into splinters!”

He heard Bella gasp in anger and then finally get up off the bed and unlocked the door. She wretched it open and glared at him.

“What?” she snapped.

Caius stepped around her and walked into her room. He was not about to have a romantic spat in front of his colleagues.

He heard her heart sputtering in anger as she slammed the door.

There were several books that were scattered around the room as well, making it look as though she was some kind of recluse. He could also smell her all over this room and it drove him mad.

When he finally looked her in the eye he saw her face was red in anger. Her eyes were full of unshed tears, something he learned later that when she was angry her eyes would water.

He took three steps towards her so she had to crane her neck to look up at him.

“I am not one to be ignored,” he growled.

“I’m not ignoring you,” she quipped. “I’m avoiding getting bitten by a psychotic monster.”

“You still think so lowly of me, do you?” Caius asked in anger. He took a step towards her and saw that she took one back. “You think the Cullen boy was gallant in craving your blood everyday? You think that he didn’t want to bite you for sinister reasons, rather than my wanting to bite you for mating reasons?”

“What?” Bella breathed.

Caius realized he shot himself in the foot. He told her why he wanted to bite her before he showed her what he felt. He was only making things worse.

“Ah, hell!” he growled throwing his arms up in exasperation.

Caius’ hand shot out and he interlaced his fingers with her own. He was done being civil with her. He just wanted everything to be laid out on the table rather than ignoring the elephant (their bond) in the room.

It was just as intense, if not more so, than the last time.

He showed her how he felt when he kissed her. He showed her why he wanted to bite her, to mark her as his own. He showed his possessiveness when it came to her and how his fury superseded any form courteousness. He showed her how much he really did love her and he was no longer worried of scaring her away. He showed her absolutely everything.

When he finally emptied his soul to her he let go of her hand and waited for her reaction.

She was staring at him wide-eyed like a doe, like he just told her he had a tail.

He counted to ten and then did it again before she spoke.

“I… uh…” she sputtered. “I didn’t realize the…. uh… severity of… all this…” she said gesturing to the space in between them. “I didn’t know that’s… uh… why y - you wanted to bite me.”

Caius didn’t speak, and didn’t move. He simply nodded and moved purely on instinct and gripped her face in between his hands and pressed his lips lightly to her own.

Caius was pleasantly surprised when he felt her desire and hunger for him in reciprocating the kiss, even going as far to feel her warm tongue slide against his lips. He immediately deepened the kiss, taking control over the situation. He needed to feel powerful. He was done with her making him feel weak and like some virginal boy.

He felt her moan erotically into the kiss and he pushed them back into wall so he could press his body against hers. He was more than aware of her humanness and made a conscious effort not to hurt her. But that didn’t stop his hand from wrapping around the back of her knee and hitching it over his hip. Her arms slid around his neck and he could feel her trying to meet his kiss so he didn’t have to bend so far down. He let both of his hands boldly slide down her back, over her bottom, and grasp the backs of her thighs. He then hoisted her up so she could wrap her legs around him. He pressed her a tad bit harder into the wall so he could hold her there, but let his hands roam her body. He moved his mouth to her neck and he could feel the blood rushing through her veins.

This time he did not worry in the slightest that she would be afraid of his wanting to mark her. He knew she understood that him wanting to bite her was solely from the mating bond and had nothing to do with hunger.

He even was so bold to let his razor sharp teeth graze her neck, not enough to bite, but enough to get the feeling of doing such.

“Caius,” she breathed.

He ripped his mouth away from her throat and kissed her hungrily. He couldn’t stop himself from jutting his tongue into her mouth, but he didn’t think she minded as she let out another moan.

He could feel her desire for him and it only accelerated his own. She wanted him to grip her tighter and when he did as she wanted, she sighed his name into his mouth. He vowed that he would make her say his name in that way as many times as he could for the rest of their lives.

God, he wanted to mate with her now more than ever. One of his hands was even feeling the skin of her bare back under her shirt. Her hands were in his hair and roamed over her shoulders.

He could feel her want to mate with him too, but he could also feel her uneasiness in the prospect of having sex with him at still such an early stage in the relationship.

Then she thought something that made Caius stop kissing her all together.

_He wont like that you’re still a virgin,_ she thought at herself scathingly.

Caius stopped what he was doing instantaneously. When he looked up at her she was staring at him nervously, biting her lip in the process.

“No, no, no il mio piccolo,” he whispered. “It’s not that.”

He gently released his hold on her legs and let her slide down the wall back to her feet.

He took her face into his hands and let his thumbs rub across her cheekbones. He pressed his forehead against hers and looked into the depths of her chocolate eyes.

“I don’t want your first time to be when you are not ready. And I sure as shit do not want it to be against a wall half-dressed,” he said with a half smile.

Bella was blushing bright red now and he could feel her embarrassment. He knew she was very young still and he would not push her. Not in this instance.

“Now,” he said pulling his head, but not his hands away from her. “Are we done with this idiotic dance of you pretending this isn’t happening?”

Bella bit her lip even harder and refused to look him in the eye, but finally nodded in defeat.

He would never tell her how much that slight gesture meant to him.

“Good. Are you tired?”

Bella’s eyes shot up at him and she rolled her eyes. “You know I am. You felt everything.”

“Alright,” he said with hesitation. He didn’t want to leave her, but he also didn’t want her to be uncomfortable.

Bella rolled her eyes again and took his cold hand in her warm one.

“Come on,” she said. “You can lay with me if you want, but I’m warning you its going to be pretty boring.”

Caius smiled as she tugged on his hand as she made her way to bed. “I really doubt that.”

Bella walked over to other side of the bed and pulled a sweater on. Caius knew that she would be cold and somewhat regretted asking to stay the night, almost.

She crawled into the bed and without hesitation wormed into his open arms so she was draped over him.

Caius pressed his lips into the crown of her head and waited for sleep to take hold of her.

“Don’t you have duties during the evenings?” she asked sleepily.

“I considered myself to be on a sabbatical when you arrived, little one,” he replied humorously.

To his surprise Bella actually let out a small laugh. Hearing it made his heart soar.

She yawned after some time and he could feel her heartbeat begin to slow down to strong, even thud.

“Rest now, little one,” he murmured. “I’ll be here when you wake.”

Caius smiled as he looked down at his confirmed mate bathing in the moonlight. He wished they could stay wrapped up like this forever.


	10. Chapter 10

Over the course of the next month Caius spent every waking hour with Bella. He began his day waiting anxiously for her to wake, and when her eyes finally opened he kissed her as deeply as she would allow. She would always laugh and break the kiss, calling him incorrigible. He would then sit impatiently on the window seat for her to shower and dress for the day ahead.

He didn’t care that he was being needy. She was well aware of his feelings, as he was of hers. He knew she was in love with him, even if she wasn’t able to say it quite yet. He knew she was still nervous of the prospect of being romantically involved with vampire royalty. He also knew she was skeptical of staying the castle.

Caius realized weeks ago that if she wanted to leave the castle and start a life with him outside the castle walls, that he would agree without hesitation. This notion irritated Aro to no end, but he was confident that peaceful living was not something Caius would be able to stick with for long.

Caius didn’t care one way or another. He was happy to do as she wished as long as it meant staying right next to her. He would be whatever she needed.

Today the overcast was heavy. Dark clouds blocked out the sun and shady sky threatened rain. Most of the local humans were staying locked in their houses to escape the possibility of rain. Caius and Bella however were walking hand in hand happily through the streets.

Her thoughts were always introspective. She seemed to only think of others happiness rather than her own. She was constantly trying to get out of other people’s way, thinking of how her parents must be feeling, and wondering if the wolf-boy was safe. She rarely thought of Edward anymore, but when his name entered her mind she quickly snuffed it out as she was aware of Caius’ mind linked to her own. She was sparing his feelings, which Caius was grateful for, but still thought it was unnecessary. He rarely commented on her thoughts as he knew he was already walking on thin ice when it came her permission to listen to them. She was a private person after all, as was he, and he didn’t want to step over any lines in listening to her most intimate thoughts.

After he took her to dinner, Bella insisted that she wanted to walk around the city to familiarize herself with the streets. They chatted frequently and when the first drop of rain hit the cobblestones, Caius persuaded her to step inside for fear she would get sick.

They sat in the small café to wait out the rain. Caius sat right next to her in the tiny booth so he could continue to touch her. She ordered tea to warm up from Caius’ cold touch, but still did not ask him to let go of her hand. That made Caius very, very happy.

_What in the hell does he want?_ Bella thought suddenly.

His eyes shot out to Bella’s line of sight and saw she was looking at an older looking gentleman who was openly gawking at her chest.

Caius sighed heavily.

Italian men were always grabbing and hollering at women. They were not known for their civility when it came to courting women. It seemed to be a phenomenon that would never leave Italy, it was the same in the 1800’s and it was the same now. They acted like pigs in Caius’ opinion.

When Bella heard this she looked up at Caius with wide eyes, she didn’t realize he was hitting on her. She didn’t think anyone would have thought she was worth the trouble.

“You are very beautiful,” he chuckled into her ear. “You should realize that, little one.”

Bella scoffed and her face turned that gorgeous shade of pink he loved so dearly.

“I don’t like to be stared at,” she mumbled into her cup.

Caius raised an eyebrow at her and leaned in. “Well, then you must be extremely unobservant because I feel as though I’m constantly staring at you,” he said with another chuckle. And then he grinned at the next sentiment he was about to say. “Do you want me to tell him to stop?”

She did not disappoint with her reaction.

She choked on her tea and coughed loudly. She looked up at him in pure fear that he would hurt someone.

“What? No! Leave him be!” she whispered in panic.

Caius chuckled and kissed her on the temple. “As you wish, little one.”

They waited there for about an hour before the rain started to let up. He felt Bella’s tiredness and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her against him. She lay her head on his chest and sagged against him closing her eyes. Caius wished (for the hundredth time that month) that his body temperature wasn’t so low and his flesh wasn’t so hard. He wanted to offer her comfort rather that coldness.

“I am comfortable,” Bella argued sleepily.

Caius chuckled and looked down at her still closed eyes. “You say that, but I can also feel how cold you are right now.”

Bella snuggled further into Caius’ side and yawned. “Edward was always complaining about how he couldn’t do the same. You can’t change it so don’t worry about it,” she muttered.

Caius’ eyebrows shot up in surprise. She rarely mentioned Edward if ever. He knew she was still hurting form the way he left her and it was a point of contention in their relationship. At least, he thought it was.

“Edward was my past,” she explained.

“I was under the impression that you still loved him,” Caius retorted bluntly.

Bella finally opened her eyes and looked up at him in surprise. “He is in the past,” she repeated quietly. “He doesn’t… compare to whatever this is.”

Caius’ heart clenched and he swooped down to kiss her in response. He didn’t usually like soft words, but her statement could not have made him happier.

She squeaked in shock from the sudden movement but responded in the kiss nonetheless. Her hand rested on his chest and Caius wished he could feel her bare skin on his. He settled for intertwining his fingers into her long auburn hair.

When they parted her face was beet red. He realized that kissing in public of affection were not her forte and not something she sought out.

“You’re in Italy, my love,” he said ruffling her hair. “Public displays of affection are the norm here. The other day I saw a man making love to a woman in a ditch.”

Bella stared at him for two heartbeats before she burst out laughing, making Caius laugh in response.

“Oh my god, that it just… appalling,” she said between giggles.

“Don’t judge,” he quipped playfully. “I can’t say the thought hasn’t crossed my mind in regards to you.”

Bella rolled her eyes but was still blushing.

“The rain stopped,” she said gesturing to the sky and changing the subject quickly. “We should get back to the castle before I fall asleep at this table.”

Caius nodded and dropped a 50 euros on the table.

The man that was staring at her was now regarding Caius with curious eyes as they walked passed his table, sizing him up.

“_It’s not polite to stare_,” Caius said in rushed Italian.

The man quickly averted his eyes in only slight embarrassment.

Caius’ hand twitched and he had to physically stop himself from backhanding this idiot across the café.

Bella laughed once and he felt her squeeze his fingers. “It’s not a capital offence. Calm down.”

“I know,” he said irately. “I still don’t like him looking at you like a piece of meat.”

“You mean like you do?” Bella retorted saucily.

Caius burst out laughing slung his arm over her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.

“Exactly,” he responded.

When they made it back to the castle Bella lay against Caius while reading a book. Caius’ fingers ran through her hair, which he learned was something she enjoyed. She was getting drowsy and lay the book down on the bed and finally let sleep wash over her.

After about twenty minutes of her sleeping he wormed out from underneath her and quickly scribbled her a note saying he would be back monetarily.

He realized he hadn’t eaten in some time and was actually quite thirsty.

When he rounded the corner he heard heavy footsteps approaching.

“Well, well, well, look who finally tore himself away from his new master,” Felix said amusedly. “I wouldn’t have thought her leash extended this far.”

“Do you need something?” Caius asked annoyed.

“No, just wondering how much longer we’re going to have to wait until we finally get a new Volturi member,” he said casually leaning against the wall.

Caius grabbed Felix by the throat and slammed him against the very wall he was leaning against. He had had enough of his antics and was also hungry, he was in no mood to fuck around with this ape.

“Why don’t you mind your own business rather than gossiping like an old woman, Felix?” Caius growled. “Her change is no concern of yours.”

“Enough!” a booming voice echoed throughout the halls.

Caius turned and saw Aro gliding over to them with an irritated expression.

“Release him, Caius,” Aro ordered.

Caius begrudgingly let go of Felix’s throat. Felix harrumphed and walked away from the scene with what Caius assumed to be a bruised ego.

“Buon Dio, Caius,” Aro muttered. “You would think with your new love affair your temper would have settled.”

Caius snorted and began walking to the feeding room with Aro hot on his heels.

“How is it going with her?” Aro asked.

“She is open,” Caius muttered discreetly.

Aro grabbed Caius’ hand breifly to learn what they had been up to. When he let go a small chuckle echoed through the stone walls.

“So she is,” he agreed. “I have to admit I am quite excited to see what powers she brings once she it turned. Not being able to read her mind has been so illuminating. Surely she will have powers, don’t you think?”

Caius blatantly ignored the question all together. He didn’t want to discuss her personal life with Aro. It oddly seemed like he was betraying her trust.

Aro continued to babble on and on, even as Caius fed on a young twenty-year-old Canadian woman. He even went as far to follow Caius back to Bella’s door for which Caius stopped and waited for him to finally cease his incessant chatter.

“Oh, and one more thing,” Aro said before leaving Caius’ side. “The Cullen boy was in the castle while you were on your little rendezvous in town with Bella.”

“What?” Caius snapped.

“Yes, insistent little man he is. He seems to still be in love with her. Said something about wanting to leave her so she could live a human existence.”

Caius could feel Aro’s pure joy at his discomfort. Aro was always amused by drama and gossip. He and Felix got along in that sense.

“I told him that she belongs to you now,” Aro continued. “He didn’t seem to take no for an answer. I suggest that next time you leave the castle that you bring another guard with you.”

“I can keep her safe well enough on my own,” Caius snapped. “And she doesn’t belong to anyone.”

“In any case,” Aro said waving off Caius’ objection. “Be on the look out. That boy is crafty with his mind reading capabilities. He looked quite crazed.”

“Good-night, Aro,” Caius said turning his back and closing the door quietly. He would not reward him with a reaction.

When he crawled back into her bed she immediately wrapped her arm around his torso and placed her head on his chest.

“Where’d you go?” she mumbled half-asleep.

“No where, little one. Go back to sleep.”

Bella didn’t respond as she already fell back asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

Caius was sitting on the bed while Bella brushed her hair for the evening. He watched as the long tresses smoothed out after each swipe of the brush and prayed that she would never cut it.

It had been a week since the Cullen boy had shown his face in Italy. As soon as he finished his conversation with Aro a week ago, he ordered every vampire from here to Greece to be on the look out for the mind-reader. He ordered that he be brought to Caius as soon as possible when found. He was not about to let this little brat get to his mate.

He wanted to tell her right away, but was still insecure about their relationship. He knew she said that that boy was in the past. But he wasn’t so sure.

He wanted to believe, by the gods he wanted to. But he knew the hold that a first love has on the heart. He knew that she was anything if not ruled by her emotions. And what else did he expect? She was still a human and still a teenager.

“Caius? Hello?” Bella said while waving her hands in front of him.

“Huh? What?” Caius said, completely unaware that she was talking to him.

She laughed once and poked him on the shoulder. “Am I boring you?”

Caius sighed and shook his head quickly. “No, I was just thinking of something. Apologies. What were you saying?”

“What were you thinking about?” she asked, ignoring his question all together.

Caius sighed. He wasn’t used to feeling guilty about anything. Never in his life did he remember feeling like he wronged someone. His actions were always well thought out and calculated. Never missing a detail or possible outcome was his speciality. It was why Aro put him in charge of things like war tactics and defense.

He did, however, feel bad about not telling her the truth of what was happening. He decided that he waited long enough. He was not going to get in the habit of lying to her at such an early point in their relationship. He wasn’t going to let anyone, let alone Cullen, to drive a wedge between them.

“Edward Cullen came to the castle last week when you are I were out. He requested that we give you back to him and that he is still in love with you,” Caius finally said candidly. “That is what I was thinking about.”

Bella’s eyes widened and she looked as though she saw a ghost. Her hand went to her chest and fingers pressed deeply into the skin.

“Oh,” she said after she swallowed thickly. “Wait,” she said looking at him with a furrowed brow. “This happened last week?”

“Yes.”

“And when did _you_ find out that he came here?”

“On the same day.”

Bella looked taken aback for a moment before crossed her arms furiously. “And you never thought to let me know about this until now?”

“I didn’t want you running back to that moron after he said he wanted you again,” he replied. “I know you’re still in love with him.”

“You don’t know anything because you don’t tell me anything!” she snapped throwing her arms into the air. 

“This is why you haven’t touched me in a week.” She said. It wasn’t a statement, as he saw her putting the pieces together. “You didn’t want me to see your thoughts.”

He heard to heart begin hammering much louder and quicker. Her face was turning red and he could see her bottom lip quiver.

“Calm down, little one,” Caius said standing from the bed. When he moved to touch her she backed away.

Caius sighed heavily and rested his hands on his hips. “You should consider yourself lucky I told you at all. Most things in this castle remain a secret amongst some of the most elite.”

Bella’s mouth actually dropped and she glared at him. “So I’m supposed to thank the almighty prince for bestowing me with such an honour? Fuck you!”

Caius’ eyebrows actually shot up from her retort. She rarely swore. He would be lying if he said he didn’t like the he was rubbing off on her, making her just a little less refined.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” Caius said trying to dampen her temper. “I just didn’t want him making you unhappy again. You forget that I see and hear everything you do. I know how he made you feel. I didn’t want that to happen again. I didn’t want you to feel as though you were shattering into pieces.”

His honesty seemed to make her less angry, which he was happy about. She looked as though she didn’t know if she wanted to slap him or hug him.

“You cant lie to me all the time,” she mumbled. “Edward and Jake did that to spare my feelings and it only hurt me more in the long run. I’m not a China doll.”

Caius bowed his head in embarrassment. He was ashamed that he treated her so pathetically. He treated her like child, not an equal.

“I know,” he mumbled. “I’m sorry.”

She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. “Well, where did he go? What happened?”

Caius bit his lip in apprehension. “Aro told him to leave Italy and never come back unless he wants to join the guard. He also told him that you don’t belong to him. After that he left in a huff. Aro thinks he will be back. Since then I’ve ordered Volturi members in various parts around Europe to inform me if pops his head in. The guards surrounding the castle are also aware.”

Bella stared at him for three heartbeats before she spoke again. “And what are they to do if they do see him?”

Caius stood his guard firmly.

“If he is seen in Europe I will be informed, but likely nothing will be done unless I order it. If he is seen in Italy he will immediately be brought to Aro and the guard for judgment,” he said carefully.

“Judgment for what?” Bella asked confused.

Caius took a step towards her and looked at her carefully. She no longer looked like she wanted to slap him, so he thought that was good.

“Judgement for breaking the King’s orders. He will be judged on whether or not his actions justify death.”

Bella looked around the room as if looking for a response. She didn’t seem to know what to say to that.

Carefully and as slowly as he could he put both his hands on either cheek to see what she was thinking. She was nervous for Edward’s life. She didn’t want him to die, even if she wasn’t in love with him anymore. She was scared that his death was because of her actions. Her guilt was astronomical.   
  


Even though he and Bella had only been together for a short time, he realized quite quickly how she always blamed herself for others actions. Even if it was not her fault. She was immensely hard on herself.

“Bella,” he said quietly. “He is the one making these decisions. Not you. If he breaks the ruling than it was out of his own volition. You are not responsible for his actions.”

“Fat difference that makes,” she grumbled.

Caius had had enough of the distance they were experiencing over the last week. He missed her touch and missed her mind melded with his own.

He pulled her into his arms and was relieved to feel her tiny arms wrap around his waist. He bent down to smell her hair and he revelled in it. He longed for her touch for the past week. 

_God, I missed you_, he thought at her.

_I missed you too_, she thought back meekly.

They continued to hold one another for a few minutes before he pulled back and looked at her.

“If he comes here I cannot be held responsible for how Aro will react,” Caius said gravely.

“I know,” Bella muttered.

Caius could feel her fear and worriedness for Edward. He hated that she felt this way, especially about a man she used to love.

“Do you want to be alone?” he asked when he couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“No,” she answered immediately. “But I do think I want to speak to Aro.”

Caius took a deep breath through his nose to calm himself. He knew eventually that her relationship with Aro would have to deepen, but Caius was greedy. He didn’t want her to spend any time with anyone besides him. Caius also hated the idea of her becoming friendly with Aro. She was a good person and Aro didn’t deserve her time. Hell, Caius didn’t deserve to be with her let alone spend time with her too.

“What is it that you would like to speak to him about exactly?” Caius asked finally.

Bella looked up at him defiantly. He knew she could see his guarded expression. “I want to ask him to spare Edward’s life.”

“Why?” Caius whined.

“Because Edward’s family are good people. They don’t deserve to lose a son and brother,” she said while making her way to the door. “He’s a good person too. He doesn’t deserve to die because he’s stubborn.”

Caius growled under his breath but didn’t offer a retort. He couldn’t say no to this request. Not when Aro would eventually read his mind and come looking for her anyway.

“Alright?” she asked as they made their way down the hallway.

“Fine,” Caius snapped angrily.

When they finally made it to Aro’s study, Caius didn’t even bother knocking, he just opened the door and strolled through the threshold.

Aro was sitting in a plush armchair that looked extremely old, probably from the Victorian ages. He looked up in feign shock when he saw the young couple. Caius had no doubt in his mind that Aro heard them walking to the door long before Caius opened it.

“Caius! Bella! What a pleasant surprise!” he exclaimed.

“I’m sure,” Caius responded dryly.

Aro shot him a dirty look before raising from his chair. He glided over to Bella and put his arm around her, ushering her away from Caius’ side.

Caius couldn’t help the low growl that escaped him for the second time that day.

“Oh, pshhht, Caius!” Aro called over his shoulder. “You’ll have her back in a second. Now, child, what is it that you want to speak with me about?”

“Edward,” she answered evenly. “I don’t want him to die.”

Aro snorted in somewhat distaste.

_No doubt he thought the conversation was going to be more interesting than that of Edward fucking Cullen_, Caius thought.

“Why do you care what happens to him when you already have a mate?” Aro asked eyeing Caius.

“The two don’t correlate,” she responded quickly. “He doesn’t deserve this.”

Aro started to mull it over with his normal theatrics. Caius knew Aro’s decision was already made. He knew that Aro would rip the Cullen brat limb from limb if he entered the castle. Right now he was just humoring Bella in letting her talk to him. Caius knew that once Aro’s mind was made up it was rare for him to change it.

“A deal is a deal, my child,” he finally said. “Edward agreed to his fate when he let us keep you. His life, traded for you agreeing to stay here until you have turned. A ruling cannot be undone. Why, it would look horrible on our part if we went back on such promises.”

Aro took his hands off her shoulders and started to walk to the door. “If he comes, I will let you say your piece and try to convince him to leave. If he does not, then we will execute him.”

Aro stopped and turned around to look Bella over. “That is my offer.”

Bella nodded in acceptance and Aro squealed like a child in giddiness.

“Excellent! You will find that we can always come to a compromise, my dear,” he said.

With that he turned and left Bella and Caius in his study.

Caius looked at her and saw that she was just as worried as she was before, maybe more so.

“Well?” Caius asked looking at her skeptically. “Isn’t this what you wanted?”

“No,” she said solemnly. “He won’t leave if I ask him. He’s too noble for that.”

Caius sighed and moved to stand in front her. He cupped her cheeks with both his hands and made her look up at him.

“Aro is our leader. We can’t go against his wishes,” he told her seriously.

“I know. It just… sucks,” she said looking up at him.

Caius nodded and pulled her in for an embrace. He liked that he would soon be rid of the boy what he did not like that it was at the expense of his mate’s feelings.

“I can try and speak with him, but I doubt it will make a difference,” Caius offered.

“No, it’s alright. I know his mind is made up.”

Caius grit his teeth. He wanted to soothe her pain. He didn’t want her to be sad. “What can I do?”

Bella didn’t answer at first. She just looked up at him from his chest. Caius didn’t realize until now how short she really was. The top of her head only reached up to his mid-chest.

“I…” she stopped and cleared her throat. Seemingly unsure of how to say something.

“What?” Caius asked. She looked positively petrified of what she was about to ask him.

She cleared her throat again and seemed unable to look him in the eye. “I… uh… I want you to…”

After the third time she was finally able to say what she wanted to say.

“I want you to turn me,” she said finally.

Caius’ mouth dropped.


	12. Chapter 12

Caius paced the room in irritation. How much sleep did human’s need anyway? He looked forward to when she was turned so he didn’t have to wait out these long incessant periods of her sleeping.

After she told him she wanted to be turned he practically attacked the poor girl. He covered her face and neck with kisses while muttering, “_finally_.” He was waiting for her to definitively tell him that she wanted to be turned. He was amazed that his patience was growing so thin for a man of his age.

He was also amazed that she wanted to be turned. When he pressed her about her reasoning, she said she wanted to be able to defend herself in case Edward came for her. She said she knew he would take her against her will if she otherwise disagreed to his request to take her. She said he would kidnap her to protect her from the evils of the vampire royals.

He rolled his eyes at that. She was hardly being kept here against her will. Last night when she was sleeping, she was dreaming of Caius kissing and doing… other things to her. He would never tell her that he saw this for she would be mortified. Sex dreams were not something he remembered as a human, but he was certainly happy of the reminder she gave him.

He most certainly needed more cold showers lately. The more he saw her the more he wanted to take her right where they stood. Once he saw her long legs in a pretty sundress he practically keeled over. She was gorgeous, but he wouldn’t push her. Not until she was ready.

It still didn’t help that every time she bent over, and he saw her lace covered cleavage he felt his cock twitch. He couldn’t believe that a man of his age and stature still reacted like a teenage boy when she was concerned.

If she heard his vulgar thoughts, she didn’t let it be known. He would catch himself blatantly staring at her chest sometimes and she would blush, but that was the extent of it. Whenever he caught another human male gawking at her he would have to fight the urge to gouge out his eyes. She thought it was funny that he was so possessive. Caius was not amused in the slightest.

After she said she wanted to be turned they made the decision to have one more month of her being human. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t happy about that. He wanted to remember these moments. He wanted to savor her red face when he complimented her, the warmth of her touch, the smell of her hair, the shivers she would get from his cold fingers running across her soft skin, he needed to savor all of it. He was happy she was agreeing to be his mate, but he would miss her human features.

Today they were leaving the city and going to Caius’ favorite spot in the country. It was a small home near the Amalfi coast where they could have some privacy from the prying eyes of the guard. He was excited to spend time with her alone. They would have so little of it in the upcoming years with his duties in the guard.

She stirred in her sleep giving Caius the telltale sign she was about to wake up. He quickly found his way back to her bed and pulled her into his arms. He found that she didn’t like waking up without him present.

“What time is it?” she said through a yawn. Her eyes were still closed, and she was clutching him a little tighter.

“Seven thirty,” he said quietly. “I’ve been waiting all morning for you to wake up. You took long enough,” he added gruffly. 

She chuckled and rubbed his arm affectionately. “You do realize most human teenagers sleep in until noon on Saturdays, right?”

Caius snorted and ran his fingers through her long tresses making her shiver. “You still took forever,” he complained.

She chuckled and started to rise. She stretched her arms high above her head, yawning a second time.

When he reached for her, she put her hands on his shoulders, pushing him away from her. “Just let me go brush my teeth first,” she said struggling to keep his mouth away from her.

“I don’t care,” he muttered hungrily against her throat. “Fuck, you smell _so good_…”

She laughed once and he was finally granted access to her mouth. He kissed her enthusiastically and she reciprocated. Her arms were locked around his neck and she pulled him closer, as if that were possible. He gently leaned forward and pressed her into the bed so he could hover over her. He was careful to plank his body over hers so not to crush her with his much larger frame.

His eyes rolled into the back of his head when he felt her long bare legs wrap around his waist. She started wearing shorts to bed which he both loved and hated. He loved that he got to view more of her pale skin, but it really tested his restraint. He groaned when he felt the fleshy interior of her thighs squeeze his hips.

He let his hand wrap around the back of her knee and gently slide up the back of her thigh. He didn’t stop when he reached the hem of her shorts either. He continued until he could grip her pert posterior in hunger, which he never permitted himself to do before.

She squeaked under the new onslaught of raw attention, but otherwise didn’t tell him to stop. In fact, she pulled him in even closer. Her hands threaded through his hair. When her tongue battled his own for dominance he grunted in warning before she relented.

His hand was now fully under her shorts, feeling the soft fabric of her underwear. He was delighted that she wasn’t wearing a bra to bed so he could feel her soft curves press into his chest. His cock was screaming against the rough material of his jeans. He knew she could feel it too. She wasn’t thinking in rational thought at all, but purely acting on instinct, making his lust quicken. He wondered when she turned into a vampire if this is how she would still feel.

This was by far the farthest they went physically. Caius could feel her lust filled heart and how she didn’t want it to end. He could feel her wanting, her needing, as if it were his own. He could smell her arousal and the heat coming off her. It was enough to make the ash in his veins sing to his nerves.

Her hands found their way under his shirt, silently asking him to remove it. He was about to grant her request when he suddenly growled. He could hear soft footsteps down the hall coming towards her bedroom door. Because she was touching him, she could hear the string of cusses he was uttering in his brain at being interrupted. Again. 

“Fuck,” he groaned.

She laughed once and patted him on the shoulder. “Come on, get up and see who it is.”

“I can tell it’s Jane,” he grunted irately. “She probably wants to give me the keys to the Mercedes. She was the last to drive it.”

He stood from the bed and realigned his clothes to make himself look presentable. He smoothed out his shirt that was wrinkled with her grabbing at it. When his back was turned, he readjusted his pants so his erection was no longer visible.

He stomped to the door, muttering under his breath, and wrenched it open.

“What?” he snapped to a mildly shocked Jane.

She simply held out the keys and he snatched them from her hand before slamming the door in her face. He could hear the old oak door groan in protest.

“Caius,” Bella chided glaring at him disapprovingly from the bed. “That was rude.”

“What’s rude is her thinking she can just come to your room unannounced,” he bit. “Get dressed! I need to get out of this godforsaken castle where we can have at least a pinch of privacy.”

She looked up at him from the bed trying not to laugh. She was clearly amused with his outburst although he hadn’t the faintest clue why.

**XXXX**

By the time they were packed and ready to go it was already 9:32AM. Caius was practically running to the door when Aro stopped him in his tracks.

“A wee bit excited to leave aren’t we, Caius?” he asked with a wide smile.

“Do you need something?” he retorted while holding the passenger door open for Bella to slide into with a smirk. She was laughing at him a lot lately. He would have to inquire why.

_Because you’re acting like a moping toddler whose toy was taken away from him,_ she thought at him with a tiny giggle.

He turned and gave her a wicked smirk back. He liked this. He enjoyed her flirtatious side. He hoped he could see more of it.

_My toy was taken away from me,_ he thought back. _This weekend you’re all mine though._

“I was just curious if young Bella is going to come back as she is now,” Aro said pulling Caius from his silent conversation.

Caius raised an eyebrow in skepticism at his superior.

“I mean,” Aro said pretending to examine his nails. “It is quite close to that one-month mark you debated. I know you would hate it if anyone but yourself changed her. Plus, you would have all that discretion you so desperately seem to crave.”

Caius sighed and fished his keys out from his pocket. “If she wishes to be turned in Amalfi then she will tell me. We have not otherwise discussed specifics.”

“I see,” Aro replied a little sullen. It was clear it was not the juicy answer he was looking for.

“Will that be all?” Caius asked perturbed. He wanted to get out of here before they could ask him anything else.

Aro smiled deviously and held out his long bony finger, silently commanding Caius to touch him to read his thoughts. Caius tried his best to hold back a snarl but did as he was told.

Aro chuckled as soon as his skin touched Caius’. It was clear he thought it funny that Caius was so sexually frustrated.

“You better get going, Caius,” he said removing his finger and turning away. “Before you combust,” he added dryly while dispersing down the corridor.

Caius quickly obeyed and jumped into the car and pulled out onto the cobblestones.

“Amalfi looks beautiful in the summer,” Bella mused looking through the tourist book he got her last week.

“It is, amore mio,” he answered snatching her hand from the book and bringing it to his lips. 

“How long does it take to get there?”

“Running? Less than twenty minutes. Driving? About an hour and a half,” he answered giving her her hand back.

She looked at him questioningly. “Then why are we driving? I know you hate it,” she said.

He placed his hand on her bare thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. He was happy she chose to wear one of her soft, fluttery summer dresses. It meant he could press his cold finger tips into the inside of her thigh.

“I needed to get out of that castle and it’s too sunny out for me to arrive too early in the morning. There’s supposed to be rain in the afternoon. I also thought you’d like the drive.”

She nodded and leaned over the console to give him a kiss on the cheek.

They sat in a comfortable silence for the better part of the drive. The only time his hand left her leg was to delicately shift gears. Every time he put his hand back, he inched it up higher on her leg, for which she didn't seem to mind or really even notice.

She was lost in thought thinking about her father and mother. She called each of them almost every day since he gave her a phone. She made some excuse that she graduated early was going to school in Italy. She knew her father didn't buy it but her mother did. Her mother thought it was wonderful. Charlie thought it was total bullshit and that she should come home. She told him she was fine and just needed a break from life in America. She told them small slivers of the truth, when they would go for coffee or eat at some new restaurant. Caius even took her to her first bar, for which they left right afterward because she hated it. He didn't really blame her. He also thought bars and nightclubs were disgusting.

She was trying to think of ways to keep them in her life after she turned, but there was no solution she came up with short of still visiting them until she could no longer pass as aging. She felt woeful about the whole predicament.

Caius wished he could ease her worry and fear for her parents. The death of her parents was inevitable, but he too was trying to come up with ways to help her keep the relationship with her parents alive.

“It’s alright, Caius,” she said answering his thoughts. “There was never a real solution to this.”

“We will find a solution,” Caius argued stubbornly. “I want you to be happy,” he added in a hushed tone. He wasn't used to being so open with his feelings and he was still getting used to it.

She patted his hand but didn't offer a response. He was annoyed that she didn't believe him.

When they finally arrived he took their bags and unlocked the small villa. The windows were all open wide, letting the salt air breeze through the white linnen curtains. The living room had stone floors and the walls were clear of any clutter. He had a large flat screen installed when she agreed to go away with him, although he thought it would rarely be touched since she always had her head in a book. The bedroom had a massive four post bed with a white duvet. But the real thing that made the property so incredible was the view. The house itself was situated on the edge of a cliff with the backyard overlooking the sea. The patio set was comfortable enough with a large fireplace in the middle so they could spend more time outside without her getting a chill. It had never been used before so he was excited to get the chance.

“Caius,” she breathed. “This is beautiful.”

He chuckled gave her a tiny nudge to explore the rest of the house while he prepared for their stay. He was excited they were going to get two weeks of alone time. No guards, no vampire shit, just solitude with each other's thoughts...

_This is going to be a beautiful day_, he thought.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DUH DUH DUUHHHHHHHHHHH

“Come _on_, Caius,” Bella whined. “Let’s _go_.”

“We most certainly _will not!”_

“But why?”

Caius sighed and pinched the space between his brows with his thumb and forefinger. He regretted ever even thinking anything to her at all. This was worse than anything he could imagine.

“Because,” he said finally. “I am not going to go some pretentious bohemian art show when we have plenty of them in Volutrra! If you insist on going to one, I will take you when we get back. But only _after_ we leave the Amalfi.” 

She raised herself up on her knees so she could straddle his lap. She put her hands on his crossed arms and gave him a shake. Well, her attempt of a shake. It was baffling that humans could be so weak and survive all these years.

“It is not pretentious,” she argued. “It’ll be fun! And it’s an excuse to go see the town.”

Caius snorted. He would’ve been much happier staying locked away where they were. He had enough food and drink here to satisfy a small village. He didn’t need to take her into town.

After he finished unpacking, he sat with her outside watching the waves crash against the towering cliffs. Even if he couldn’t already read her thoughts, he could tell by her smile that she was ecstatic. She was sitting between his legs with her head leaning against his chest. He kept his arms snugly tucked around her ribs, listening to each others thoughts.

Then he accidentally thought of the ugly poster for an beatnik art show happening in town. When he heard this thought, she jumped and turned in his lap.

Now he had to find away out of it but was still coming up with nothing.

“Caius,” she said evenly. She wound her arms around his neck and looked him deeply in the eye. “Please? It’ll be fun.”

He glared at her begging chocolate eyes. She obviously knew what she was doing. He knew she was giving him the puppy dog eyes to get him to bend to her will. And it was working.

“You are a witch, you know that?” he growled.

A huge gorgeous smile spread across her face and she gave him a sweet, but short, kiss. “I’ll go get my shoes on!” she squealed.

Caius snorted but patted her rear as she climbed off him, enjoying the freedom to do so without scaring her away.

He sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes. He wasn’t tired necessarily, just annoyed, not with her through. His irritation stemmed from the fact that this art show would be crawling with humans. He would be forced to be civil. Moreover, he would be forced to keep touching her to a minimum.

Gods, he couldn’t believe that it had come to this. The great slayer of wolves, the most malicious vampire in the race, the third King of vampires, having to be reduced to some sniveling boy toy that bends to a human girl’s needs. Pathetic.

He wished he could be as hard stern with her as he was with everyone else. But this it just wasn’t possible. She had him wrapped around her little finger. He was just happy he wasn’t as weak as the Cullen boy. He was better than him by the thousands.

Bella appeared wearing the same flowery flowy dress but sported a pair of leather brown wedges instead of her usual sneakers. Her hair was taken out of her braids and it poured down her face and to her elbows. She also had blood red lipstick that accentuated her mouth beautifully. 

She looked gorgeous.

He sped to her at vampire speed and snaked his arm around her waist. He liked how tall the heels made her. She now came up to chin so he didn’t have to bend so far down to kiss her.

She squeaked at his quickness and tried to pull away. “Caius!”

He chuckled and moved his assault to her neck, loving the feel of her blood rushing in her veins. He could feel her face heating with that blush he loved so much.

“I am _really_ going to miss that,” he mumbled letting his knuckles graze her red cheek.

“Put me down!” she laughed.

He didn’t realize he had lifted her off the ground. She was so tiny and feeble compared to him he had to keep reminding himself to be as gentle as he could with her. He had wound his arm around her waist and the other was mauling her face in adoration.

He remembered when she first slapped him and he received all her memories. He saw how difficult it was for Edward to keep himself in control when he was around her. He didn’t blame the lad for that. For any vampire under 400 years old it would’ve been excruciating. Caius however, was over 1000 years old. He fed almost every day on human blood, he could handle himself with such problems.

“You know,” Bella sighed. “This whole analysis of my relationship with Edward is getting nauseating.”

Caius put her back on her feet and looked down at her curiously. She rarely commented on his thoughts out of respect for his privacy. She didn’t even try to dwell on them when they touching. She thought it was none of her business. He mostly appreciated that, but sometimes he would catch her eyes roll or her look of horror when he would remember something from his vast past.

“Can’t help it, love,” he said. “Seeing all your first experiences with that brat irritates me.”

“What do you mean?”

He put both his hands on her cheek and rubbed his thumbs across her high cheekbones.

“He was your first love, first kiss…” he paused to chuckle to himself. “First vampire…”

She rolled her eyes and tried to step away, but he held her closer.

“I don’t like that you were pining over him and he was being such a woman about it. I hate that he thought he could toss you aside and leave with all those newborns waiting to kill you. I most of all hate how much you loved him.”

She looked up at him curiously and placed her hand on his cheek. “Do you think I don’t love you?”

If Caius had a heartbeat it would quicken right now.

“I… I don’t know,” he mumbled lamely.

“I didn’t think I had to say it,” she breathed. “But I do love you, Caius. You should know that by now.”

Caius swallowed thickly. He didn’t believe her entirely.

“Why don’t you believe me?” she asked openly reading his thoughts.

“You only want to turn to protect yourself from Edward.”

Her eyebrows rose with surprise at his blunt response. She smiled and shook her head.

“That was one, very small reason,” she said. “Honestly, that was a cop out. I was scared you’d be like Edward in not letting me turn.”

His hands balled into fists at her hips but he let her continue. He _loathed_ being compared to that idiot.

“I really wanted to turn because I love you and I want to be with you. And it’s not just because of the bond. The bond just let me see it more clearly. It let me see _you_ more clearly. It let me see that you’re a good man, Caius.”

He snorted in response to that. He was not a good man. He killed thousands of people.

“I’ve never been accused of such,” he muttered. 

“Well, I’m accusing you. So shut up and let’s go this art show. We can make fun of the pretentious hipsters together.”

Caius let out a booming laugh. All his pent-up fear and anger in her reasoning to turn melted away almost instantaneously. He didn’t even realize it was building so much until he finally said it. He was shocked at how elated he felt. Before Bella, he would’ve just fought another vampire or killed a human to let out some of his rage.

“Run or drive?” she asked happily. She was practically bouncing up and down with excitement.

“We’ll have to drive,” he answered glumly while ushering her to the door. “Too many open spaces.” 

She looked up at him apologetically as he opened the car door for her. “Sorry,” she said genuinely. She really knew how much he hated driving when running was so much more efficient.

He rolled his eyes and nodded. He wasn’t one for people fussing over his feelings like a sullen youngster. He wasn’t angry with her; it was just going to be an irritating evening.

He sped into town with the sleek black car. He could feel her distain for the speed in which he was driving, but he found it funny rather than take it seriously.

When he finally parked, he shot her an annoyed glance when she exited the car before he had time to walk a human’s pace to open the door for her. Did she think he was not gentlemanly enough to do it? Or was she one to think she didn’t need the act chivalry?

“Have I told you how beautiful you look?” he asked when he offered her his arm.

She chuckled and shook her head. “I think you forget I can hear your thoughts. And thank-you.”

He brought her into the dingy warehouse that was packed full of Italians and tourists. The art was odd, weird photography of women in white dresses wearing Halloween masks. Caius thought it looked silly. Bella seemed to enjoy it as she led the way from photograph to photograph. Each print looked ridiculous, but Bella seemed to examine every photo with the diligence of an art scholar.

He sighed for the fourth time and Bella shot him such a nasty look that he eased back his annoyance. He didn’t want to ruin her evening, he had to remember that she was very young. She would not have seen the hundreds of art shows that he did. He just wished he could’ve prepared and taken her to one that would’ve blown her away. He wanted their date to be more… extravagant than this squalid shithole.

“I’m having a good time,” she said answering his thoughts. “You don’t need to make a giant fancy gesture every time I want to leave the house.”

Caius nodded. He had to remember that she didn’t like overzealous showboats of wealth. That just wasn’t her. He did, however, want to treat her well. He wanted to treat her like a Queen. After all, she technically would become one after she turned.

“I wouldn’t rent out the Louvre,” he muttered. “I would like it if we at least had this place to ourselves and I could give you half decent dinner.”

Her hand rubbed his back affectionately making him growl. She thought it was sweet but unnecessary. She liked doing simple things that didn’t need hours of preparation. She was content where she was.

After about three hours of sauntering from photograph to photograph she finally had enough. He decided to bring her to a small bistro so she could at least get some food in her. He noticed she hadn’t ate in almost four hours. When he touched her he noted she was slightly hungry, but not famished.

Over the last two and a half months he got to know her inside and out. He knew more about her then she probably did, and in turn, she did him as well. He could pick up on small cues to detect when she was angry, happy, sad, all of it. He tried to rectify her feelings as soon as he possibly could to make sure she was always content.

He noted that she did it unconsciously with him as well. One time he was irritated with Felix’s jabs about Caius being “whipped.” To that Bella asked him to take her to his favourite museum and show her around. He knew she was mildly interested in the history of combat and war in Russia during the 17th century, but not enough to actually want to listen to three hours of him jabbering on about it. He realized she was doing it because he wanted to show her because it made him happy.

Bella laughed as she heard his inner dialogue.

“God, that museum was too detailed. It would’ve been boring had you not been there,” she groaned.

He chuckled and reached across the small patio table to take her hand. They had just ordered her food, a small plate of mushroom ravioli and a glass of wine. She said she didn’t want it, but he insisted. He wanted her to get the full scope of being human, even if she was nervous about trying her first alcoholic beverage.

“Not my first time,” she countered. “I had a beer with Jake once.”

Caius snorted and kissed her hand. “If you can call that piss water drinkable.”

“Jake said it was a regular teenager thing to do!”

He rolled his eyes and rubbed her thumb over his knuckles. “I think we both know you are not a regular teenager, love.”

Shae laughed and moved to swat him on the shoulder with Caius easily dodging her attempts.

He stared at her shining eyes and wide smile. Her red lips were especially alluring tonight. He always thought she was beautiful, but tonight it was different. Tonight she looked sexy.

A deep blush arose her cheeks again and she looked anywhere but his face. She was still horrid at taking compliments. She would have to learn to like them if they were going to last as a couple.

“Do you think I’ll ever be able to see him again?” she asked quietly.

“Who, love?”

“Jake.”

Caius let out an involuntarily growl.

He _did not_ want her around that mongrel. He hated that she was even around him as long as she was. He would never hurt the boy, of course. Not unless he attacked Bella. He didn’t want to cause her more pain in losing people she loved. She obviously cared for him, he just hated that it was a werewolf. Moreover, he hated that he was a male.

“If you would like to continue seeing him,” Caius said carefully through gritted teeth. “You may. It is not my place to dictate who you can and can’t be friends with. No matter how much I hate it.”

Bella’s face lit up like he never saw it before and she threw her arms around his neck from across the table, sloshing their untouched waters onto the table. Her gratefulness was radiating through their bond at a rate he never felt before.

“Easy, love,” he chuckled while rubbing her back. “People will think I'm under attack with how you’re mauling me.”

She giggled in response and pulled away only to give him a very deep kiss. He was surprised her tongue slipped into his mouth, but he was not opposed to it.

“Thank you, Caius,” she whispered pressing her forehead against his.

“I know he means a lot to you,” he grumbled.

She smiled and gave him a final kiss on the lips. “Not as much as you do.”

When her food came she ate in silence. He was quite shocked that she managed to finish it all. She only took two sips of wine and didn’t finish the rest. He supposed it didn’t matter, even though he got her the most expensive one. He just wanted her to experience it before she couldn’t anymore.

He was excited to get her home where they didn’t have to steal private touches and speak in hushed whispers. He loved it when they were alone and she could be herself without the pry eyes and ears of the guard. Even just sitting and reading silently next to her with no interruptions would be a relief.

He opened the car door for her and she slid in tiredly. When he started the car and began their journey back to the villa, she leaned across the console and lay her head on his shoulder. He wormed his jacket off and draped it over her like a blanket so she could nap on the ride home.

Caius felt like he was in heaven. He was so content and happy that he didn’t even realize that he was being followed by Edward Cullen. 


	14. Chapter 14

Caius was sitting on the couch outside the villa with Bella in his lap. Her back was pressed against his chest and he was running his hand up and down her arm in attempts to warm her from his cold body. Even though he forced her to put on a sweater over her pretty dress, she was still cold. She had her head leaning against his chest while clutching his other hand to her cheek.

The night was warm, but he still had a space heater running outside for her. The only sounds were the waves crashing against the cliff and the heavy bass from the nightclub a few miles away. All he could smell was the salt and fish from the sea and Bella. He leaned down and inhaled the scent of her hair deeply. She was so exquisite. Even her scent had his eyes rolling into the back of his head.

She was lost in thought about the fun she had on the mainland. She was re-energized from her nap and was wide awake, which Caius was happy about. He was always glad when she stayed awake longer to spend more time with him.

When he wrapped both arms around her and squeezed her tight a surge of arousal shot through the bond. He was a little surprised that such a minuscule movement made her so roused, but he didn’t mind. He leaned down and began kissing her neck, furthering her arousal.

She hummed at his ministrations and turned her head to kiss him. The kiss was slow, languid, and very, very, erotic. Her tongue taunted him in ways he could not verbalize. He wished she was facing him with her pale arms wrapped around his neck.

Hearing this thought, she squirmed in his arms to grant his silent request. He released his tight hold on her, and she sat up, turning on her knees so she was now straddling his lap. She wound her arms around him just as he wanted and continued the kiss. Only this time, it was not slow. It was hungry. Like she was dying of thirst and just found water.

He enthusiastically reciprocated, running his hands through her long brown hair. She moaned when his hips bucked lightly against her. He did it again and it elicited the same noise, for which he was grateful.

Her breasts were pressed against his chest making Caius see stars. He couldn’t help but drop his hand to her hip and gently run up her body to kneed her breast covered by her lumpy sweater. She gasped, but her only thought was how good it felt to have his hands on her. She wasn’t remotely uncomfortable, she just prayed he didn’t stop.

He used his other hand to run down her back and to her bottom, clutching it appreciatively. Fuck, she had such an alluring figure, he only wished they were wearing less clothes.

She must’ve been keen on his thought this evening because she pulled away from the kiss only to cross her arms and pull the sweater off and throw it indifferently to the ground. She had a wicked grin that made him smile back as they resumed the kiss.

_Christ Almighty, he is so good with his hands,_ she thought to herself when he brashly let his hand under her dress to clutch her bottom again.

He chuckled darkly in response to that thought. He let his hand kneed her lace covered bottom for the second time that day. He wished he could see what she was wearing beneath the dress.

_You have no idea_, he thought back at her cockily.

She broke the kiss for air only to let Caius continue to assault on her neck. He very carefully let his razor-sharp teeth graze her porcelain colored neck. She moaned again and her hands began to slip under his t-shirt. He groaned when her warm hands touched his belly and chest. He assisted her and took off his shirt all together.

He saw her chocolate colored eyes rake up and down his torso making him chuckle again. He took this opportunity to grab her face and force another rough kiss with her hands running up and down his chest.

“_Fuck_, Bella,” he groaned. “You’re so fucking perfect.”

She grunted in response, her inner monologue disputing his comment completely. It always amazed him how lowly she thought herself in beauty. Society or whatever certainly had done a number on her self esteem.

He made her forget though when he slowly began to unbutton the front of her dress. She squeaked but didn’t protest, her thoughts were a slew of excitement and anticipation.

When he finally undid the last button, he slid the flimsy garment over her shoulders so her dress pooled at her hips. She was wearing a black lace bra that complimented her breasts deliciously. He pressed his mouth to the top of her breast while running his thumb over the nipple of the other through the fabric.

She moaned and tilted her head back in pleasure. Her hair brushed over his hand that was idly fiddling with the clasp of her bra. He wasn’t sure how far he should push her tonight. He didn’t want her thinking he only brought her here to fuck her.

“I… I….” Bella stuttered. She was trying to vocalize a response to him, but she was so lost in what he was doing that she couldn’t quite get it out.

“I d-don’t think… that,” she finally stuttered.

He leaned back so he could look up at her. He could see the top of her right breast was wet from his kisses. Her nipples were protruding though the material of her underwear. He wanted to sleep with her so badly it was almost painful. His cock was hard as rock and he was sure she could feel it poking her thigh.

“We don’t have to go further,” he choked. He cleared his throat in trying and failing to get his voice to sound normal again. “We can just keep doing this. I don’t want you to do anything you’re not ready for.”

She nodded and leaned in so her lips were at his ear. “And what if I _do_ want to?” she asked meekly.

He swallowed thickly. Her face was bright red in shyness. But to him, she was being so seductive and didn’t even realize it.

“Then I think we better move you to the bedroom before I explode where I sit,” he ground out.

With that, he placed his arm under her bottom and rose to his feet with her still attached. He chuckled when he heard her adorable squeak but continued his quick pace to the bedroom.

He held to attached to him and crawled up the bed until he could lay her down. He planked his body over hers so not to crush her, but he kissed down her neck and this time, he wrapped his fingers around the front of her bodice and ripped it off completely without bothering with the clasp.

He saw her rosy buds lifting to him like a moth to the flame. He leaned down and began sucking and nibbling on one, while he rolled the other with his thumb. The sounds coming from her were unbelievable. She never had anyone touch her in this way and Caius was ecstatic to be her first.

Once she was a moaning mess he began to kiss down her belly, stopping at the naval to run his tongue in circles around it. He bit each of her hips delicately while looking up at her chocolate colored eyes. When he hooked his fingers around the dress and panties, she didn’t look afraid. Shy? Yes, she was always shy. But even her in her thoughts she didn’t want him to stop.

So he silently asked her to raise her hips as he slid the offensive garments down and throwing them to the floor.

He would remember this moment for the rest of his life. He would remember his first time seeing her laid out, naked before him. She was the most gorgeous thing he’d ever seen in over 100 years. This was his mate. His one true partner to be by his side for eternity. He didn’t deserve her, but here she was.

“So fucking beautiful,” he muttered quietly.

He quickly began kissing up her thighs to the spot he so craved. When he tried to spread her legs he felt a little resistance from her. Her face was so red he could see she was mortified to have a man in such an intimate place.

“Let me see you, amore mio,” he whispered. “Don’t be afraid. Let me love you properly.”

She bit her bottom lip in apprehension and finally let him open her legs.

Her thought were running a mile a minute. She wasn’t scared of having sex with him. She had just never done such a thing before. She was nervous that she wouldn’t be good enough in bed for a man that had the experience of so many women.

He snorted against her inner thigh at that thought. She was worried that she wouldn’t be good meanwhile he was trying not to cum in his jeans before he had the chance to pleasure her completely and thoroughly.

“My dear you will not disappoint me. I’ve perhaps shielded too many of my thoughts from you. I have never wanted a woman as much as you. My cock has never been as hard as it is now,” he added vulgarly.

He let his thoughts run wild of all the times he would catch her cleavage or how untamed his fantasies truly were over the last few months. He let her see it all.

Her eyes went wide and her blush depend. She didn’t realize he was trying to be a gentleman around her with his thoughts. She was flabbergasted he even thought so callously but wasn’t put off by it.

He finally kissed her way up to the tiny patch of hair between her legs. He let his tongue run up her slit, delighted in how wet she was. He then began running lazy circles with his thumb around the bundle of nerves eliciting a loud moan from her. He removed his thumb and replaced it with his mouth, his eyes never leaving her own. She tasted just as she smelled. Completely divine. His own need was at the point where it was uncomfortable, but he ignored it. He wanted to make sure she was fully satisfied before he had his way with her.

He then, very carefully, let one finger into her opening while keeping his mouth on her. She cried out his name fueling his attentions. He pushed his finger until he felt the thin barrier indicating her innocence. He slid another finger in and allowed her adjust and stretch. When she was finally comfortable he gave her a knowing smile.

“This will hurt a little, my love,” he whispered.

She didn’t really seem to hear him as she was lost in her pleasure.

_Good_, he thought.

He then pushed the two fingers in until she hissed in pain as he broke the barrier. He ran his thumb over her clitoris with his other hand raising to tease her nipple. He was trying to soothe out the pain with pleasure and judging from the sounds she made he was growing successful.

He immodestly smelled the blood on his fingers, and he pulled them out, sucking on them thoroughly. He pressed his mouth to her core and sucked any remaining blood out of her hungrily. He knew the only other chance he would get to taste his mate’s blood was when he turned her. So he savored his moment for all that it was worth. She tasted like freesia and strawberries. She tasted like the rapture.

When the blood was gone, he inserted his fingers back inside her wet core making her mewl. He curled the two fingers inside her and began to move them in and out slowly. He shoved her thighs further apart until she couldn’t spread them any further. He lightly bit the inside of her thigh and her back started to arch. He could see the telltale signs of the peak of her orgasm so he quickened his motions.

His eyes were glued on her. He knew she touched herself at night before, but no other had ever made her cum before. So he wanted to remember every detail for his days to come.

She cried out his name and the heels of her hands went into her eyes. Her hips began to roll erotically making Caius’ cock twitch. She began to squirm under him, so he hand to place a hand on her belly to keep her still. His fingers continued to pump, and he sucked on her hard until she was finally finished.

Her heart was fluttering like a hummingbird’s wings and her chest was heaving up and down. Her body was so warm Caius felt like her skin felt like an open flame.

He let his chest drop on her legs and slide it up her body so she could feel him. He licked and kissed his way back up to her lips, stopping at her perfect breasts to pay equal attention to both.

When he finally made it back up to her mouth her arms wrapped around his neck and she kissed him with the intensity of a different woman. He groaned when she wrapped her legs around his hips, feeling her wet core against his stomach.

“You taste divine, little one,” he murmured into the kiss.

“Wha… What about… you?” she asked breathily. She was still trying to catch her breath from the intensity of her first orgasm.

“Oh, I’m not done with you yet,” he murmured.

He quickly stood and shed himself of his pants and boxers. She was looking up at him, sat back on her elbows. He was pleased to find she thought he was large and intimidating. But only in lust, not in danger.

He placed his throbbing cock against her warm center, just running it up and down her slit, teasing them both.

“_Fuck, Caius_,” she moaned loudly.

He then carefully began to push himself inside her. He did it slow, very slow, for fear he would hurt her. He groaned when he felt her tight walls clenching him tightly. He stopped when she winced and gave her time to adjust to his size. When she stretched out enough he pushed himself all the way in.

“Are you alright, little one?” he asked through gritted teeth.

She nodded and told him to move. He obeyed happily.

He didn’t last long, he didn’t expect to. But when he pulled all the way out and then back in he practically keeled over. He moved slowly with Bella rolling those blasted hips again, making him cuss out.

He heard her moans and suddenly her walls began to flutter around his cock, cumming a second time. He groaned as he soon followed, shooting his seed deep in her belly. He saw stars as he came. He never came that early either; it was almost embarrassing. But he didn’t give it a second thought when she screamed his name and arched her back, pushing those perfect breasts to his lips.

When he rolled off her, he pulled her trembling naked body against his own. He threw as many blankets as he could over her so she kept warm. She draped herself over him and nuzzled his neck, exhausted from the travel and him fucking her so well.

“Cocky much?” she grumbled hearing his thoughts.

Caius chuckled and ran his hand through her hair. “Yes,” he said. “I am _very_ _cock_-y.”

She groaned at the poor joke and juvenile behavior.

“Sleep now, little one,” he murmured with a kiss to the crown of her head. “You are beautiful, but when you don’t get enough sleep you are quite a nightmare to be around.”

She gasped in mock anger and he just let his hand run down his back and swat her ass playfully making her shriek.

As the two newly consummated couple lay sleepily in bed, Edward Cullen sat in the tree overlooking the open bedroom window. He was disgusted with what he saw. The open sullying of Bella’s innocence, the repulsive comments the Voluteri Lord made towards his girlfriend, and the open displays of her nudity, all of it was disgusting. He wanted her, and she needed him. He was going to get her back. Even if it killed them both.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys don’t mind the perspective change! Thought it might be good to see another point of view!

Bella sat on the back patio eating away at the massive mountain of pancakes stacked in front of her. She was more than content to just sit and eat watching the ocean waves for the remainder of their trip. She always loved the ocean, but then again, who didn’t?

Caius had excused himself after he shooed the personal chef out the door. He needed to feed and call Aro to make sure there weren’t any Volturi matters needed attending. She still remembered his annoyance in leaving her alone on the second day of their trip. She thought it was actually kind of cute.

When she woke in the morning Caius was already kissing her throat. He seemed more excited than usual for her to wake up. Part of her was a little shy that they were both naked in the open daylight, but that feeling was squashed when Caius rolled into her and started attacking her lips.

She noticed she had brown and deep purple bruising on her hips and thighs from Caius grabbing at her last night. Caius seemed weary of her reaction. She sensed in his mind that he was concerned she was in pain, but also swelled with pride in marking his territory. He was worried she would be frightened of him or angry. But Bella was indifferent. The bruising meant little to her. Had it been Edward, he would’ve thrown a dramatic conniption and come up with some angsty reasoning as to why he was the worst person alive.

After he heard her unconcerned thoughts on the matter, he grew incredibly loving. He began nipping and kissing her neck, even crawling down her body so he could reach her collarbone. He felt a sense of lazy contentment, like a cat in the sun. He was behaving more like a human on a Sunday morning rather than a deadly vampire king.

When she moved her leg to wrap around his own, she squeaked at the sting of pain she had from deep in her belly. She was sore, but it wasn’t unmanageable. Caius however, ripped away from his touching and looked her over in worry. She tried to assure him, but he was having none of it.

He ripped himself away from his attentions and stared at her wide-eyed. He initially thought he hurt her with how hard he was holding her. When she assured him it was just from last night, he dragged her into the bath so soak. Caius became apprehensive in touching her further until he could ease her pain. But she refused to get in unless he was there with her, which pleased him.

Her eyes fluttered shut when she remembered the feel of him sitting behind her in the warm water and massaging her shoulders, arms, thighs, and anything else he could get his hands on. His strong hands had kneaded the muscles so delicately that she had almost fell asleep in the water. That was, until he let one hand dip beneath the water, and he started caressing the folds between her legs.

“Alright?” he asked concernedly.

She sighed and gave his calf a pat beneath the water. “Yes, that feel good,” she had answered. 

Having the cool fingers circle her nerves eased the inflamed pain she had from losing her virginity the previous night. In fact, it actually made her aroused. Caius chuckled darkly as his fingers became more guided to pleasing her rather than easing the forgotten pain. He had her moaning and arching for him in less than three minutes, which inflated his ego even more than it already was.

She, in turn, let her hand reach behind her and begin fiddling with his cock. She had never touched one before and was skeptical at her ability to please a man. But with his murmurs of encouragement and light instruction, she had his toes curling and chanting her name with a string of fowl cusses. When he finally came, she too felt a little pride her accomplishments.

While they had their little rendezvous in the claw-foot tub, she had no idea that another person was in the small villa cooking her enough food to feed a village. She was shocked when she emerged from their bedroom, wearing only Caius’ shirts as a dress to find an old man shuffling out the door with a shirtless Caius’ hand on his back. She had yanked down on the end of the shirt to cover her more modestly. Caius turned and arched a brow at her efforts. The old man saw her and turned a shade of red that she was sure to last for the remainder of the day. Apparently, Caius had hired a personal chef to come in each morning to cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner and keep put it in the fridge,

Caius seemed amused just as she was embarrassed. She screamed in fright when Caius appeared in front of her out of no where, surprising her with his speed yet again.

“You are very fucking beautiful wearing my shirt, little one. Although, I do prefer you wearing nothing at all.”

He hoisted her up by her thighs and plopped her down on the counter. She could feel her cheeks blush when he yanked her thighs apart and stepped between them. He grinned mischievously at her before he kissed her so deeply, she thought she would pass out from the intensity. They parted, both panting from the passion. He gave her a final chaste kiss and instructed her to eat and that he would be back within the hour.

When he said he needed to feed she didn’t say anything nor think about it. She was in love with Caius, but she still didn’t like that he continued to feed on people. She could take a lot of shit, but murder was not on that list yet.

She popped another bite of the delicious blueberry pancake into her mouth and washed it down the fresh orange juice. She looked to her watch and saw that it had been forty-five minutes and Caius still hadn’t returned. He was probably running into some problems somewhere she imagined, she wasn’t too worried.

She closed her eyes and thought of the vampire in question. He was almost the exact opposite of Edward, who she rarely thought of anymore unless it was to remember how infantile the relationship truly was. And how she couldn’t believe she accepted the way he treated her.

He was broody, whiney, and constantly worried about her safety. He was continuously talking about her like she was a child who couldn’t manage her own health. It was an annoying trait that she thought he would get over.

He didn’t.

Caius was strong, carried himself just as he was portrayed in the books about the 100-year war. He held himself with confidence and power because he was those things. He protected her but valued her opinion on everything. She wasn’t just some dumb klutzy child to him as she felt Edward saw her. She felt like a real woman who with a partner rather than a child with a babysitter. He didn’t make decisions for her, he consulted her on everything. It was such a glaring change from what she was used to.

Caius was also not interested in stupid toys and gadgets like the Cullen’s were. He was more content sitting with her and a book rather than taking her out to fancy places and spending inordinate amounts of money. He never tried to buy her.

Although, he did have his moments. This villa with a private chef was a great example. He wanted her to sit and relax and spent a lot of money to do it. However, in this instance she didn’t mind. She liked it. It wasn’t a material object so much as it was an experience. Plus, it let them get away from the nosy eyes and ears of the guard. She did realize it was an ostentatious display of wealth. In this one case she would let it go and just enjoy it.

The very thought of the guard hearing what they were doing last night made her face turn bright red. She would have been mortified if Jane or Felix heard the noises she made last night… Or this morning.

Her cheeks burned again for a different reason. She remembered the feel of his power last night. Sure, Edward was strong like all vampires. But Caius, he was strong in every other sense of the word. The way he asserted himself in bed last night, while at the same time being loving and sensitive turned her into mush. Her blush deepened in remembering him standing naked before her. He looked more like a Greek God than a man. It was also obvious he had been alive for a long time. He knew exactly what to do when pleasing a woman. That man was far too talented with his tongue.

She threw on a pair of jean shorts and left Caius’ t-shirt on. She was too lazy to change into something more suitable. She also had to admit she liked how animalistic and possessive he was when he saw her wearing his shirt this morning. It turned him on far more than he was willing to admit verbally. At that moment she was grateful she could read his thoughts, even if they were delightfully boorish.

She of course loved him for other reasons other than just his skills in bed. She loved that he didn’t use posh language to get his point across either. He simply stated how things were bluntly and that was the end of it. She liked the honesty that came with him. He was far more unrefined than Edward. He was more like her in that sense. She always felt like she was trying to be on her best behavior around Edward whereas Caius couldn’t have cared less.

She realized that Edward was just too… immature for certain realities of a relationship. He still acted like a sullen teenager. Caius acted like a man who trusted his woman.

She was ripped from her musings when she heard something over the cliff. It sounded something large and heavy had fallen to the rocky beach ninety feet below their villa. 

She pulled on an oversized white knit sweater and heard it again, only this time it was louder. She got up from the table and walked barefoot through the grass to investigate. The harsh winds whipped her hair around her face and chilled her bare legs. She slowly inched to the edge of the cliff and peered down, careful not to overstep even though she was so far from the edge.

She didn’t see anything, only waves crashing into the rock wall. Her brow furrowed when it looked like the side of the cliff had a massive chunk taken away from it. It looked like a bulldozer had come through and ripped a piece out.

She was so caught in her musings that she shrieked ridiculously loud when she felt two arms snake around her waist and yank her backwards.

She heard the breathy chuckle of Caius along with the onslaught of emotions and thoughts from their skin on skin contact. His lips went to her throat and began placing apologetic kisses on her skin.

“Sorry, couldn’t help it,” he chuckled into her neck.

“Dick,” she grunted shakily.

He burst out laughing and walked her backwards and further away from the edge. He finally turned her around and cupped her face so he could greet her properly with a kiss. He still had that glint of evil in his eyes at being able to scare her.

He cocked his head when he saw her look over her shoulder with a shiver. “What were you looking at? What troubles you?”

Before he finished the question, he received the answer from her thoughts.

“Wait here,” he murmured before giving her hand a squeeze to investigate.

He flitted to the edge and looked down at the very rock she was staring at. She gasped when he casually stepped off the cliff to jump the ninety feet bellow. She still had to remind herself sometimes that he wasn’t human and was far more durable than she was. It had been a while since she saw any feats of strength from a vampire. Often, she would forget with Caius because he acted so normal.

After she counted to ten twice, he finally reemerged from the cliff. And he didn’t look pleased.

“Get inside,” he barked.

“What?”

When she didn’t move, he sighed and held out his hand to her peevishly. It was another thing she liked about him. He didn’t manhandle her around like she meant nothing. He waited for her to give her permission first even though it annoyed him.

When she took his hand all she could hear in his mind was a slew of cusses and angry mutterings. She didn’t see what he was mad about, he was just irrationally so. He swept her inside the house and dropped her on the couch. He then began mumbling to himself as he riffled through his pockets trying to find his phone.

“Caius,” she said finally said crossly. “You’re scaring me.”

His head snapped up and he exhaled through his nose trying to calm himself down. It was clear her words sobered him from whatever was going on through his head.

He quickly held his hand out, opting for showing her what he saw rather than communicating it verbally.

She took his hand and gulped.

She saw that when he jumped over the cliff, he saw the chunk taken out of the side just as he did. He also saw footprints in the shape of a male size ten shoe. When he climbed back up to the top, he sniffed a rock and recognized the faintness of Edward’s scent. It was weaker than normal, probably because of the high winds.

She gasped and stared up at him as he let go of her hand. But not before he caught his thoughts.

_Conniving little fucking rat, aren’t we? _He snarled at Edward in his head. _Waiting until the winds are high so I wouldn’t smell your putrid stench the moment I stepped outside? I wonder, did you see Bella and I last night? Did you enjoy watching your former pet writhe in my arms as I took her virginity? I hope you did. I hope you heard her scream my name last night, because I’m going to make sure she screams like that every night. And I want you to hear it. All of it. Because she is **mine**. She will never be yours ever again. _

She stood and ran her hands through her hair frustratingly while pacing the foyer. She knew he was hoping that Edward would hear his thoughts. He was trying to goad him into coming out. Even if it did sting a little that he was using her as bait.

“I need to call Aro to inform him,” Caius said evenly.

“And then what?” she challenged. “You order that he’s to be brought to Voltura to be executed?”

“I had duties long before I met you and I will have them long after you are gone.”

She set her jaw from the angry words. She knew he was mad at the situation and was lashing out at anyone who was in his way. She saw he did this when she first received all his memories. He was always like this; his temper was notorious after all.

“He doesn’t know what he’s doing,” she said stepping closer to him. She took his limp hand and tried to plead with him, but it was obvious he was shutting down. He was turning into the war lord he was so famous for. Void of emotion or understanding. She tried to make him see reason, even if it meant manipulating him just a bit.

“He’s just doing this because he thinks I need saving. He doesn’t know that I love you. Please, I love you, Caius. Not him. Just leave him be.”

He growled in response and ripped his hand away from her. He jabbed a finger in her face, but she didn’t back away or even flinch. She knew him well enough that he would never hurt her.

“_Do not_ use my feelings towards you against me,” he bit. “You are fucking stupid if you think I will let that little weasel come into my home and take what is mine or drive a wedge between us.” 

She sighed and folded her arms across his chest. “What would you have me do then? Just let it happen? To completely forget that he exists?”

“Yes.”

Bella sighed and folded her arms across her chest.

She couldn’t take Edward away from Esme and Charlsie. That would be too hard on them. And Alice? She would for certain be catatonic if something happened to her favourite brother.

Caius finally found his phone and called Aro. He spoke openly and ordered that Edward was to brought to Voltura immediately. He quickly added that he was not to be touched as a side note, making Bella happy he was at least trying to be reasonable.

When he hung up he turned away from her placed his hands on the island counter-top. It was the same counter-top he had set her down on this morning when they were happily basking in the newfound physical love they had for each other. She already missed it even though it was less than an hour ago.

“You’re angry with me,” he stated slowly. “I can feel it.”

“I’m not angry with you. I’m angry at this whole situation.”

He snorted but didn’t move. He clearly didn’t believe her. She didn’t need to read his thoughts for that.

She quickly went to him and wrapped her arms around his ribs from behind. He was as still and unmoving as a statue, but he also didn’t pull away.

“I’m not angry with you. I just don’t want anyone to get hurt,” she mumbled.

Caius seemed to relax at that. His hand moved down her forearm and clasped her wrist, giving it a tight squeeze. “I’m sorry I snapped at you,” he grumbled back.

“And I’m sorry I tried to manipulate you,” she mumbled.

She could feel his anger with himself. He thought he was acting like an asshole for yelling at her like he did. He felt rotten about it.

Bella didn’t want him to beat himself up over having a temper. She tugged on his shirt until he finally turned in her arms. He placed both hands on either side of her face and gave her a careful kiss. He then wrapped both his arms around her shoulders and pulled in for a close hug. She shivered when his cold fingers threaded through her hair, easing the headache that she didn’t know she had, but he clearly felt.

“I love you,” she whispered against his chest.

“And I you,” he sighed. “Your heart is too big, little one. It’s going to get you killed. He is stalking you like a predator. I will not tolerate it.”

She looked up at his red eyes and sighed heavily. She knew he was right, but she also knew the Edward she fell in love with. She knew he was a good person, just sometimes his mind got in the way of things.

He rolled his eyes at her thoughts but quickly gave her a chaste kiss. “Never mind all this,” he declared waving a hand in the air. “You are supposed to be relaxing and having a good time. I don’t want you worrying over this shit so we will continue our time here as scheduled. I will make sure he doesn’t lay a finger on you.”

She raised a skeptical brow at him. She knew he would not be able to keep this out of his mind, but she thought the effort was gallant.

“Now,” he said letting his hands drop to her hips. “Chelsea said she bought you a very skimpy bikini that I want to see you in.”

Bella rolled her eyes at his attempt to distract her from the obvious growing problem that was Edward.

“Unless you prefer to wear nothing at all?” he asked impishly. “That would be my preference after all.”

She rolled her eyes a second time and made her way to her suitcase. She was happy he was back to the incourgable man he was before. But she was still worried over the new situation. She was worried for Edward’s life. But she was also worried on how this would effect her new relationship with a Volturi King.


	16. Chapter 16

Caius chuckled when he saw Bella jump and squeal from the cold water in the pool. She was wearing a very small, very tantalizing, blood red bikini that complimented her pale skin. Her long brown hair was piled in a high messy bun on top of her head with a few tendrils curling around her collarbone.

She looked so stunning when she was relaxed as she was now. Especially in that outfit.

Even though it was only a mere three hours since Cullen brat had paid them a little visit he was still angered. Since then, he stuck to Bella’s side like a leech. He refused to leave her side for longer than a few minutes. They spent most of their time since then by the pool.

He had forgotten to tell her the place even had a pool and tennis court. It was to the east of the villa and down the hill, far from the back patio. He preferred to keep a scantily clad Bella away from the public view. The area was like a half bowl with a cliff facing the opposite side of the house, so he would be able to see anyone that tried peering down at them. Including Edward fucking Cullen.

The mere thought of the boy sent his blood into a boil. He was threatening Caius’ first chance of happiness and he wanted him dead. Had it not been for her pleading he would’ve had little Edward’s head mounted above his bed while he fucked Bella good and hard beneath the brat’s piss colored eyes.

He sighed and cracked his neck in annoyance. Things were becoming complicated. She was still human, which wouldn’t have been a problem had there been no immediate danger. The irrational side of him wanted to turn her as soon as possible and kill the spineless little weasel. But he thought better of it. He would never take his choice away from her, even if they were getting to the deadline she set.

He winced when he remembered the harsh words he practically spat at her. He was used to speaking to most people in such callous terms and biting tone. He never did it with her though. He was ashamed of himself.

She seemed quick to forgive him though. He could read her thoughts when he hugged her. He could feel her forgiveness and understanding that he was just stressed with the whole thing. He didn’t mean to snap at her like some stupid oaf.

She truly was a gift. He realized that she was far better than him in most regards. She was kind, and a good person. She hadn’t been tainted by the ugliness of the world. He would savor that. He would never let her turn into something like him. He would keep her just as she was now. Forever.

“Caius?” she asked sensing his dramatic inner soliloquy. “Are you alight?”

“Fine, love,” he said jumping to his feet.

He walked over to her and pulled her in for a kiss. He growled when he felt her warm flat stomach press against his own. She was soft everywhere and her scent sent him reeling. He couldn’t get enough of her.

She smelled like him. It was a concoction of his scent with her own. It made his mouth water and his eyes roll into the back of his head.

“What difference does it make if I smell like you?” she asked looking up at him charmingly.

Her big eyes were peering up at him from impossibly long lashes. Her chin was resting on his chest so she could crane her neck up to look at him. Caius almost wanted to roll his eyes at himself for thinking she looked _adorable_. A word he didn’t think he used in over 300 years.

“Because,” he said answering her question. “Other vampires will smell my mark on you. It means they will know that I laid my claim on you. It means everyone else will know that you’re mine and I’m yours.”

She cocked her head and then a deep blush rose up to her neck and to her cheeks.

_Everyone’s going to know we’ve had sex,_ she thought in embarrassment.

“Yes,” he snorted out loud. “But that’s not something they focus on. It’s more that they know you are mated to another. Its… more of a primal way of telling all other males to stay away from you. And women for me. True mates are obviously more powerful, so many will smell it on both of us when they get within a few meters of our proximity. If they entered the house, they could probably smell it all over the place.”

Despite his answer she still groaned in humiliation and hid her face in his chest. Her arms wound tighter around his ribs and he snickered in response at her timidity. She was so shy it was often humorous.

“Shut up,” she growled.

He grinned and lifted her off her feet only to launch them into the pool. She shrieked and clutched onto him tighter as they fell into the water together. He held her tight and quickly swan to the surface so she wasn’t uncomfortable with the limited air.

When they surfaced from the warm water, she splashed him in irritation, but he did let go of her. He liked holding her and the pool was warmer than his skin. It almost felt like he was a normal temperature. Almost.

He swayed them back and forth in the water while she hummed in contentment. He was content in just holding her while she wrapped those long legs around his waist and laid her cheek on his shoulder. She chuckled when she heard his thoughts on how much he enjoyed her legs.

They bobbed in the clear water for a bit before she began trailing a stream of kisses up his neck and behind his ear.

He growled at her in warning, but that only seemed to encourage the delectable torment. When her warm tongue gently licked the shell of his ear his cock twitched, growing harder and harder as she continued.

“Bella,” he breathed. “You torture me, little one. I know you are still in pain. I will not touch you while you are still hurting.”

He felt her wicked smile against his neck before she breathed, “How about if I touch you instead?”

He growled again and led her to the shallow end so he could sit her down on the edge with him standing between her legs. He let his hands roam up her ribs and cupped her supple breasts. He squeezed them gently, wringing the water from the fabric of her swimsuit. She let her hand slowly slide down his belly and into his swim trunks, gripping his manhood gently.

When she began to stroke him he had to place both his hands on either side of where she sat so he didn’t fall over. She was still nibbling and biting on his neck, furthering his arousal.

“Why don’t you hop up here?” she asked innocently patting the spot next to her.

He saw where her thoughts were headed and did as she asked as fast as he could.

She smiled seductively as she gently undid his bathing suit. She helped him wiggle out of it so his cock could spring free. He placed his hands behind his head and watched as she knelt down on her elbows and knees and took him into her mouth. Her ass was in the air as she bobbed up and down. He thought she looked glorious. Like a true woman who knew how to seduce a man.

He groaned loudly when her tongue touched him. He remembered the scared little lamb that entered through his doors months ago and saw very little of her now. He saw who she really was and was glad he could see her be her truthful self.

It was probably the most erotic thing he ever witnessed. Seeing a half naked Bella, dripping wet from head to toe, with his cock in her mouth while looking up at him. He gasped when the tip of her tongue licked him from base to tip and then back fully in her mouth.

He had no idea where she learned such a movement, but she was making his head spin with pleasure.

He let his hand go to the back of her head to gently guide her when she lost her rhythm. She was new at the practice of pleasing a man, but he wouldn’t have noticed had ne not been able to read her thoughts.

When she got back on track he let his hand travel down her back and to her ass. He let his hand give it a grateful squeeze before he gently smacked the cheek playfully. It did not go unnoticed when he felt her arousal from his attention. He made sure he would remember that for next time he had her naked in his bed. Turns out the not-so little innocent lamb liked to be spanked…

She hummed, making him groan again. The vibrations of her throat were more than alluring.

“Fuckin’ hell, Bella,” he growled.

He could feel the first wave of his orgasm coming like a battering ram.

“I’m going to cum,” he warned her with ha grunt.

_Good_, she thought. He learned that she actually _wanted_ to swallow him whole. She liked seeing him come undone, she felt powerful in making him do so. He thought it was well warranted since he hadn’t felt this way since he was turned. It also enhanced his arousal tenfold.

He finally let his head fall back and he grunted as he shot his seed into her mouth. His body convulsed and he tried his best to keep his embarrassing grunting to a minimum.

When he finished his chest was heaving up and down as he tried to calm himself. She crawled up his body as he quickly re-laced his shorts. He pulled her into a fervent kiss and yanked her down to rest on his chest. The pool was forgotten as they let the hot Italian sun dry their skin.

**XXXX**

Two days later Bella and Caius found themselves laying on the patio again. Caius was wearing a t shirt and jeans whereas Bella opted for a sweater and pajama pants to combat his cool skin. She insisted every night that she would ignore the cold and cuddle up next to him. He would be lying if he said that didn’t like it. He would just never admit that he liked something as juvenile as having her snuggling up next to him like she did. It was like he never felt love before and he was thirsty for her attentions.

She was lying on top of him with a blanket sandwiched between them. She yawned and yawned but insisted she wasn’t tired. He drew invisible shapes on her back making her hum in approval. He hoped it would eventually lull her into sleep.

“Tell me a story,” she mumbled against his chest.

“What would you like to hear?”

“Anything. Just tell me something to keep me awake.”

He chuckled and wracked his brain for something she’d find interesting. When he came up with nothing he sighed in frustration.

“You already know my entire life’s story because of the bond. I don’t think there is anything interesting I could tell you that you don’t already know. My thoughts are your thoughts.”

She peered up at him under impossibly long lashes.

“I wish we didn’t have to leave here,” he blurted out to appease her inquiry.

She looked up at him and giggled at the unpredictability of his comment.

“I know,” she sighed. “I feel like we are just settling down and getting to know each other. It’s like heaven here.”

He squeezed her tighter and nodded. He could ask Aro if they could extend their stay for a full year, he would obviously have to go back to Voltura on occasion if there were any pressing matters, but he could make it work. His mind was already making plans when she burst out laughing and caressed his face with her knuckles.

“Relax, Caius,” she cooed. “We don’t have to make any rash decisions. I don’t want to get in your way with the guard.”

“You would never be in the way, little one,” he murmured. “I just want you to be happy and this place seems to do that for you.”

“Being with you makes me happy,” she said. “I don’t need all this fanciness. Just you.”

He petted her hair and let his head fall back on the cushions. He felt his sight getting dizzy, like he couldn’t breath. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to get his wits about him.

He was a little overwhelmed with all these emotions with her sometimes. It was like nothing he ever experienced. He wasn’t used to the amount of love that seemed to pour out of her and him too in return. It was… like he was drowning in it sometimes.

“Sorry,” she said feeling his flood of emotion. “I didn’t mean to…”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said stopping her before she started. “It’s not you.”

She cocked her head and looked at him curiously. She was waiting on an explanation, even his mind was refusing to answer her thoughts. He could hear her questions as to why he was acting so strange.

“My wife…” he started. “She didn’t love me. And I didn’t love her. It was more of a strategic chess move of power for us both. I don’t remember my life before this either, so I have no idea if I ever loved then as well. This is all just… very new to me. I’m worried that I will say something in anger and… I’ll scare you away. I don’t know how to be a.. a… caring partner… or husband or whatever you want to call… this,” he finished.

He hated talking about feelings. It was irritating and it made him feel weak. He thought he wouldn’t have to once the bond was in place. He didn’t realize it, but his hands and balled into hard fists on her back. All sense of relaxation was gone, and it was just pure frustration that loomed over his senses.

She shushed him and stroked his hair. She slid up his body and gave him a loving kiss. She heard his thoughts and knew how much he hated talking about this. She was accepting of it and silently vowed not to push him too much. She just accepted his love for her in whatever capacity he could give it.

“I don’t deserve you,” he mumbled after they parted. “You are too good for me.”

She snorted and patted his chest. “You’re ridiculous.”

After a few minutes of just holding her he unapologetically let his hand slide down her back and to her ass. She laughed at him but didn’t stop him, so he continued to run his palm up and down her posterior making her hum. A slow smile creeped across his face when he felt her heartbeat quicken.

“Don’t think I didn’t catch that you liked it by the pool the other day,” he growled.

“Liked what?” she asked.

He responded by swatting her ass and eliciting a soft gasp from her. “When I spanked you while you had my cock in your mouth.”

She didn’t respond because she didn’t need to. He could hear her heartbeat beating like a hummingbird’s wings.

“Are you still sore?” he asked quietly.

“No.”

He grinned and looked down at her. He could see from here her cheek were red as an apple.

“Do you want me to take you to the bedroom?” he asked quietly.

She cleared her throat delicately before she answered.

“I think we’re fine where we are.”

Caius grinned and proceeded to rip her sweater in half with all previous worries forgotten. 


	17. Chapter 17

It was nearing the end of their stay and Caius had yet to see the Cullen boy again. While Bella was sleeping he did a quick preliminary sweep of the perimeter and found nothing. When he expanded his perimeter to 80 kilometers, he did catch the faintest of Edward’s scent, but lost it in the ocean.

It was clear the Cullen boy was lurking around from a far distance; he just wasn’t sure where.

He made a note of not mentioning it to Bella. He didn’t want to pressure her into a life of eternity just because the axe was over her head. He was adamant on keeping it her own choice. Even if time was running out.

Their time in the villa was coming to an end. They were scheduled to be back in Volturra next week and Caius was dreading it. He didn’t want to go back. Not when he was actually enjoying himself so thoroughly here. She seemed happier than he ever saw her in the castle. Probably because he got to know her so well. It was like he knew her inside and out.

She was currently sleeping on his chest, muttering about nothing in her slumber. He slid his hand under her shirt and looked into her thoughts.

Caius was particularly intrigued in her sleeping habits. She seemed to fall asleep right after their little trysts and again late in the evening. He also noticed if he roused her too early, she would quicker to snap at him for doing something that annoyed her. Which was rare.

Her dreams were absolutely fascinating. Sometimes it would be a vague memory of her mother or father. Other times it was (to much of Caius’s annoyance) a memory of Edward or Jacob. He especially hated those. Sometimes it would be a nightmare of ghosts or ghouls that were chasing her for which Caius would coo in her ear until the dream shifted into something more pleasant.

Right now she was dreaming of a time she was sitting and drinking tea with her grandmother. Something Caius learned was an event she always loved. She seemed to enjoy her family well enough, even though she was going to abandon them for him.

He knew he didn’t deserve her. Not when he was so openly evil and she was not. He knew he would pay a great price when he reached hell. But he didn’t care. He would savour ever moment with her. He would never take her for granted. Not like that Edward brat.

He looked over to the glowing alarm clock digits and saw that it was 3:00AM, still much too early for her to wake. So he continued to stroke her hair and rub her back. He enjoyed these moments with her. It was peaceful… calming even to know that she was safe in his arms.

Suddenly he heard a branch snap loudly outside about three kilometers to the east. His ears pricked and he involuntarily growled when he heard his name being lowly called out by none other than Edward fucking Cullen.

He quickly, but gently, untangled himself from her arms and rushed towards the noise.

The skinny man stood out in the open near the edge of long cliff drive towards the main road leading out. It was clear this was a tactic used so he could make a run for it if he needed. That being, Caius’ back was faced toward the cliff and Edward had hundreds of kilometres of forest to run into before hitting town. Caius, however, was confident he would be able to catch the mangy little weasel if need be.

Edward’s shirt was filthy, he was barefoot, and his jeans were covered in grass stains and mud. His wild eyes were pitch black, indicating he hadn’t eaten in quite some time. His face was shallow sunken, and he was tapping his finger against his thigh in anticipation. He looked antsy and furious.

Caius was delighted.

“Well,” Caius said conversationally. “It seems your reputation proceeds you. You seem to be just as wily as they think you are.”

“I want to see her,” Edward responded desperately. “I need to talk to her… to explain things. She’ll understand after I just… talk with her.”

“I don’t think she wants to see you,” he said casually. He then intentionally shifted his mind to his time with her by the pool. He remembered her lips around his most intimate parts and the way her smile curved when he told her he was going to cum in her mouth.

Edward snarled and took a half step forward before quickly jumping back. He could read Caius’ thoughts, so he knew he was trying to goad him into a fight. For he knew Caius would undoubtedly win, even with his little mind-reading abilities.

“She doesn’t love you!” Edward roared. “She only wants you because of the fucking bond! If she knew the things you’ve done –”

“ – oh, she does,” Caius sneered. “She saw _everything_. She saw it when we first touched. She saw me rip apart the Children of the Moon. She saw the thousand-year war. She saw me feast on entire villages, drain them of all hope, murder their wives and eat their young. She saw me torture _thousands_ of humans and vampires alike. And guess what? She doesn’t care. She still wants me more than _you_. So why don’t you do everyone a favour and fuck off.”

Edward stepped back in panic. He could read Caius’ memories and could see her loving acceptance. He knew that Edward was not prepared for this. So, he continued to show him her laugh, her enjoyment of his company, their dates, and then, finally, he showed Bella riding him last night with her head tilted back, moaning in ecstasy.

Edward’s fingers went to his face and scraped his nails down his cheeks in torture. He let out an inhuman moan that sounded more like a wounded animal than it did a grown man. The boy looked truly tormented from the onslaught of Caius’ memories and that thrilled him to no end.

He took a step towards the boy and Edward swiftly took a step back.

“That is not my Bella,” he moaned more to himself than anyone else. “She’s only with you because of the bond. Even if she said she’s fine with it she’s not. It’s just the bond... it’s the bond,” he repeated over and over again. 

Caius laughed in response and folded his arms across his chest.

“Funny,” he chuckled. “Tell me, she was with the sweet-hearted werewolf boy, wasn’t she? She didn’t like him much. Refused his advances. And then suddenly I come along and she’s all over me. I think we both know what kind of a man she wants.”

Edward growled and jabbed a bony finger at the older vampire. “You are _not_ a man! You are a monster! You’ve enslaved her through an ancient spell! She never would’ve otherwise given you the time of day!”

Caius snickered and leaned against a tree casually. He always enjoyed playing with his prey.

“I don’t know about that. She seemed to like to give me the time of day when we fucked on the patio furniture in broad daylight. Tell me, has she always been so hungry for a man’s touch? Or is it because you refused her for so long that she hungers for my cock every waking hour?”

Edward scoffed in disgust and horror. Caius only grinned.

He would never speak about her so callously to anyone else. Or probably ever again. He wasn’t quite this crass, especially when he was speaking about Bella. But he needed to make his boy loose his control. He needed to goad him into losing his temper and make a mistake.

“You are disgusting,” Edward whimpered. “She doesn’t deserve you. If she heard you now she would run straight into my arms. Your thoughts are lies! My Bella would never do those wretched things.”

“She has and she will,” Caius said uninterestingly. He was already annoyed of this back and forth. He needed to end this.

“This is boring, all your droning on and _on_,” Caius said reaching into his pockets for his cellphone. “I suggest you run, boy. I am calling Aro to let him know that you’ve defied his ruling. I’m sure Felix will be pleased to have a new assignment if I don’t kill you first.”

“So you refuse to take me on yourself?” Edward mocked. “Classic Volutri guard. Obviously too weak to hunt me on your own so you need the help of outnumbering me.”

Caius cocked his head and sent Aro a quick text. He then stuffed the cellphone into his back pocket and lunged toward Edward.

Edward dodged him and ran in the opposite direction. The boy was quick, he’d give him that. But he was not as old as Caius was, and he’d seen every trick in the book. 

Caius turned left and then right, tackling Edward at the tree line only for him to work his way out from beneath him.   
  


Caius cussed when he heard the boy dart out from underneath him. Turns out the little brat was quick on his feet and quick read Caius’ thoughts. No matter. He could run on his instincts. Thousands of years of being in the guard taught him that much.

However, right as he was about to make a lunge for it, he heard Bella’s soft cry from behind him. Caius also heard a russling of sheets and her cry out his name.

He knew he had to decide. Either attack the little shit or go to save his Bella. He chose the latter without question. He would never let his hate and anger cloud his judgement of what was important. She was the only think that was important. Aro and his people would deal with the insufferable little cockroach.

“No!” Edward snarled seeing his rapid change of mind.

He turned his heel and darted back towards the villa. He rounded the narrow corner to see the man he knew as Emmett hauling a screaming Bella over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

Caius gently plucked her from the large oaf’s meaty hands and gave him a swift kick in the gut. Emmett was sent sprawling to the ground and rolled off the cliff.

Caius quickly set her down on her feet and assessed if there was nay injury. She looked frightened and confused at being roused so quickly from bed.

“Are you alright?” he asked quietly.

She nodded while clutching his clothes in her tiny fists. “I think so. What – what are they doing here?” 

Caius pulled her close and clutched her hip. “Come,” he said ignoring her question. “We must leave. I can’t protect you here properly. Not when their entire fucking coven is out there. We need to go into town. We will stay at a hotel for tonight.”

She nodded rapidly and with no bout of hesitation, wrapped her arms around his neck as he picked her up off the ground.

He ran as fast as he could into town, he didn’t have time nor the patience to see what became of the Cullens. His focus was on her and her alone.

When he finally made it into town, he quickly hotwired a car much to Bella’s skeptical eyes. He then drove to the nearest 5-star hotel that overlooked the water and rented a room. He supposed they looked a little odd, with both wearing sleepwear with no shoes, but he tipped the concierge 100 euros to keep quiet. He didn’t have time for nosy humans.

When they made it to their room, he called Aro and several of his most trusted men, screaming and snarling into the receiver saying he wanted guards here this instant. He was being demanding, strong, and the very leader that many feared. He threatened harm to all if his orders were not followed to a tea. His tactical training and soldier in him was coming out tenfold.

He knew he was probably scaring her as she only ever saw his brutal side from his memories.

When he hung up he swatted a lamp across the room and shattered it into the wall. He was outraged and wanted…. No…. needed to kill something. He wanted to see Edward’s eye lids ripped out, he wanted to pull the fingers off his mother’s body and force him to watch. He wanted the man to be brutalized and tortured for attempting to take away the only thing that brought him joy.

He stood with his back to her and tried to get a grip. He mildly heard her bare feet pad across the marble floor to stand behind him. He shivered when her hand rested on his shoulder. She gently pulled him to face her and when he didn’t she huffed in irritation. She ducked under his arm that was gripping the backrest of a chair and looked up at him.

“Caius,” she said quietly. “You need to control yourself. It’s okay.”

He almost snarled at her comment until her warm hand rested on his cheek. Although he always hated to be told to calm down, he could see her intentions through her thoughts. She was concerned for him. She didn’t want him to be upset. She didn’t like it when he was angry. Unbelievably, she actually felt guilty that she was the cause of all this.

“Christ,” he muttered which only enhanced her guilt.

“Gesù Cristo!” he snarled. “Stop that! It’s not your fault. It’s _his_.”

“I – I know,” she mumbled. “I just hate that he’s causing you such a headache.”

Caius clenched his jaw and looked over her head. He could feel her worry for him, her concern. He supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised when she didn’t feel an ounce of fear for herself. He thought it was very typical of her to care more about others’ problems than her own.

“I need you to listen to me,” he said finally.

He took her head in both his hands and gently let his thumbs swipe up and down her cheekbones. He stared into the depths of her chocolate eyes and gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead before speaking.

“If it comes down to it, if he threatens you or my family, I will maim him. And I will not allow you to feel bad about it either. This was his doing. He was given a second chance and he disobeyed. There are consequences that go far beyond you or me. Do you understand me?”

Bella nodded seriously. She took both his wrists in her hands and gave them a gentle squeeze. She could see where his thoughts were headed. She could see what his bloodstained plans were. She could see it all, and she was accepting of it. She was accepting of his uglier side.

Tomorrow, he would hunt Edward Cullen down and anyone else that got in his way.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a long one! Comments and kudos much appreciated!

Bella sighed heavily as Caius stepped on the gas speeding down the winding roads. He was silently muttering under his breath and she was staring out the passenger side mirror, watching the once happy place disappear over the rolling hills.

She wished their trip didn’t end on such a sour note. She liked the sea and she enjoyed getting to know Caius even more than she already did. She was sad that their vacation ended because of Edward. It angered her that he was being so possessive when he was the one who up and left her.

She did as Edward asked, she moved on with her life. She grew, she found someone that loved her and she was happy. And now here he was, stalking her and telling her what was best for her. _Again_.

She felt tears prick her eyes as she thought of all that they were leaving behind. She should’ve said yes when Caius asked her to stay a full year alone on the coast with him. She regretted it greatly.

She got to know his quirks. His demeanor when he wasn’t playing the almighty vicious leader. She knew his loving, and angry side. She felt she got to know him better than she knew herself.

Caius’ head snapped to her and his hand grabbed her chin. He forced her to look at him even though she was embarrassed by her overly sensitive reaction.

He didn’t have to ask her what was wrong. He could read her thoughts through their touch. He knew exactly why she was upset.

“I can smell your tears,” he murmured quietly with his blood red eyes looking at her with concern. “I don’t like it.”

Despite herself, she laughed once at his comment. She used the hem of her sweater to blot the tears that threatened to escape.

Although she had spent years around vampires, she was still astounded how sensitive their sense of smell was. She was a little nervous when he didn’t break eye contact with her while he was driving. But that fear was squashed when he expertly turned the wheel at a large bend in the road without looking away from her.

“Sorry,” she mumbled thickly. “I was just having a good time before we had to leave.”

Caius’ thumb slid across her bottom lip in an effort to soothe her. She could read his thoughts on how much he truly hated seeing her sad. He despised it. It was like an instinct.

“Me too, little one,” he said softly. “We will come back once Edward is dealt with. I promise.”

She nodded and he finally let her chin go. He snatched her hand interlaced their fingers together in comfort while getting a slew of cusses towards her ex-boyfriend.

_Edward fucking Cullen_, Caius thought huffily. _He thinks he can come and take my mate away from me? That pathetic idiot has another thing coming to him. With guards at the east and south wing he will wont even set foot in the castle before he is apprehended. Felix can lead that team… he enjoys that area. I’ll slot him with Antonio…. Or maybe Charles? He’s usually good at keeping Felix focussed. If we also keep guards in North tower she wont be touched. Aro will have to keep tabs on the shift coverage. We will need lookouts on the west wing, that has weak defenses… especially if he’s driving in from the perimeter of the city… Her father and mother will need to be protected as well. I’ll give Antonio that lead. With all his whining lately he deserves it. _

She let him continue to think of the tactical defenses to arrange. She actually enjoyed hearing his expertise in the art of war. It was somewhat fascinating to hear how his mind worked.

She remained quiet for the duration of the drive. She just listened to Caius’ thoughts and tapped her finger on the consol. He had fiddled with the radio until he found a station he knew she enjoyed even though she never vocalized it. Normal couples learned these little things over a period of years. They, however, learned it in an instant after touching one another. She had to admit, it was nice to leap frog over all that work in the relationship.

When they finally arrived at the castle he got out and blurred around the car to open the door before she had a chance to open it.

She took his hand and they strode through the door to be met by a frowning Marcus and a smiling Aro.

“Welcome back,” Aro said. “Although, I am sad of the circumstance.”

“Jane!” Caius barked into a dark corner of the room where Jane mysteriously appeared from. It didn’t get passed Bella that he ignored Aro’s comment completely. It was obvious now more than ever that when he was issued a task, he could not be deterred.

“Bring Bella to my chambers,” he ordered. He then turned to Bella and grasped her chin again. “I will be there momentarily. I have to arrange a few things.”

Bella nodded and awkwardly let the tiny Jane pull her off her feet and run her to Caius’ room.

When she entered, she realized she had never been in Caius’ room before. In fact, all of her belongings (what Caius bought for her really) were all neatly stacked in various areas throughout the large room.

The giant four poster canopy bed had roses and fish carved into the poles. The initials ‘C.V.’ were carved into the base of the bed, indicting its owner. The window looked out towards the city of Volutra with a balcony that had a small kitchenette and patio sofas and chairs.

The large suite also had a bathroom that was bigger than Bella’s living room back in Forks. It was complete with and his and hers sink and massive jacuzzi bathtub. Her toothbrush, hairbrush, and all her belongings were put in the sink closest to the wall.

She idly wondered which Volutri guard was tasked with such a thing. She was a little embarrassed they did all this for her when she was more than capable doing it herself.

After a few hours Bella was beginning to worry. Caius wasn’t back yet and it was after 10:00PM. She figured he had other more important things to attend to, but she didn’t think it would take this long. She opted for a shower before bed to keep her mind busy. There was only so much time she could kill in reading a historical vampire text on the Yugoslavian war.

She washed her hair and body as slowly as she could. She could see the bruising on her hips and thighs was beginning to diminish. A part of her was somewhat sad about it. It was like their time near the sea was being forgotten. However, she quickly put that thought out of her head as she knew once she turned she would ask Caius to reminisce that time for her while she read his thoughts. She remembered Edward saying that all his memories of his human life were muddled and foggy. She was glad in this instance that Caius would be able to remember everything with perfect clarity. She read his thoughts back in the villa and he was chronologically categorizing everything to memory so he could think of their happy time in the Amalfi Coast together. He rolled his eyes when she thought it was a sweet gesture.

She also realized that when she turned, she would have to feed on people. This would be a requirement of being associated with the guard. She knew Caius would never force her to do it, but somehow, after seeing so many of Caius’ thoughts, it was like she understood. It came with nature. Humans destroyed everything around them to build cities and eat animals. They killed everything. It was evolution that really had come into play when the vampires came into the world. They controlled the humans from taking over too much. They didn’t want to control and heard humans like cattle, they only ate what they needed and left them to live their lives.

She didn’t think she could fall in love with anyone more than she did Caius, including Edward. It was like a primal thing. She knew everything about Caius in a manner of seconds. And then soon after, she fell in love with the man. She knew what he needed as he did her. He was like no one she ever met before. It was like Edward was a child and Caius was a man. There was no contest, no comparison, Caius was a part of her now and they fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

She knew he eviler side though. She saw it when they first linked after she slapped him many months ago. At the time she was horrified at how cruel and vicious he could be. But after she had more time to think, she understood that he was simply defending his family. Aro and Marcus were like his brothers, and they were being threatened by another group during all the wars that raged. She saw the fierce loyalty to them and how angry he became when someone threatened them. He wasn’t this cruel monster that killed people for sport, he was protecting his people.

She was laying in bed almost asleep when she heard the heavy oak door creak open. She moved to sit up, but Caius was there before she could manage. His hands gently pushed her back down and he lay beside her, pulling her into his arms facing him.

She nuzzled his chest and neck while wrapping her leg around his own. Her arm wound under his own and grasped his large shoulder. His hand grasped her knee and hitched it higher on his hip, pulling her closer and closer. He kissed the top of her head and left his lips there, grunting in the process.

“Is it pathetic to say that I missed you?” she mumbled against his porcelain skin.

She shivered when he chuckled, feeling his cold breath creep down her neck.

“No, I was actually thinking the same thing.”

He rubbed his hand up and down the back of her thigh. She was wearing sweatpants and one of his shirts as she knew it would be cold with him in bed. His thoughts indicated he was annoyed she wasn’t naked, which made her laugh.

“You know,” she started. “It wouldn’t have to be this way if you turned me. Then we wouldn’t have to worry about things like sleep or warmth.”

Caius was quiet for a minute. She probed his thoughts with her own mind and was a little shocked at what she heard.

His thoughts were conflicted. One, more primal part of his brain was screaming at him to do as she asked, to change her right this instant without delay. He wanted her all to himself and needed her to feel the intensity that came with having a True Mate combined with vampire senses. He wanted her to understand and feel the possessiveness. He wanted her to understand how different it was for him to have a True Mate as a vampire, how much more intense it was for him than it was for her.

The other part of his brain was telling him under no circumstances would he turn her because of Edward Cullen. He thought it was a weak and selfish move. He didn’t want to pressure her just because she was being threatened. He wanted to keep it her choice. He knew he could protect her and keep her human and wait for her to be ready.

“Caius,” she said quietly. “I love you, that’s why I want to turn. It just happens to be convenient timing. That’s all.”

He snorted in response and ran his cold fingers through her wet hair.

“You are young,” he murmured. “I don’t want you making such a big decision too rashly and then turn around and have it ruin your life.”

“Being with you would not ruin my life.”

He sighed in response but didn’t answer. He was still conflicted about it.

After a few minutes of silence, he finally spoke.

“Bella, if you turned and changed your mind or if something happened that made you feel differently, you would be trapped in a life of eternity. You would never be able to go back. You would be stuck like this, forever.”

“I would be with you forever,” she argued. “That’s what I want.”

He pressed his lips to the crown of her head before pressing his forehead to her own. She looked into his red eyes and prayed he would grant her request. She felt like she never wanted anything so badly.

“After the few years you will never be able to see your family again. Your father, mother, Jake, all of them will cease to be in your life,” he said.

He was fighting a losing battle. She could see his thoughts that he was going to do as she asked. He was just trying to postpone it a little bit longer. 

“Then I will cherish my time with them when I do get to see them,” she replied easily while running her fingers through his hair. “You _did_ say we would do this when we get back.”

He growled before he leaned in and kissed her slowly. She could feel his unrelenting joy that she was sure in being turned. She could also see his dread in the change. He was dreading it because he knew how painful it would be for her.

“Bella,” he whispered with his eyes closed. “Are you sure? _Absolutely sure_? There will be no turning back once you decide.”

“Yes,” she breathed. “Yes, you’re all I want, Caius.”

He pulled her in for a tight hug. She felt like she would get bruises, but she didn’t care. There was nothing coming from his thoughts but love and admiration. She felt none of his anger or hate. None of his violence, she only felt his love.

“I want to make love to you one more time before I turn you,” he murmured against her head.

When he felt her clear hesitation in having sex with him with a bunch of vampires with pristine hearing, he chuckled.

“My dear, we soundproofed these walls many years ago. We can still hear faintly if they are close to us, but I can assure you, no one will hear. Being without any company for the last three hundred years, I wanted my room as far away from everyone else as I possibly could.”

She giggled and without hesitation kissed him hard on the mouth while unbuttoning his shirt.

He kept his movements slow, he spent the better part of two hours _worshiping_ her body like she never knew was possible. His hands spread across her skin and he tried to feel every inch of her one last time. His lips followed his hands and left her a moaning mess. She didn’t know how many times he made her cum. She lost track after the third. It seemed his only intention was to make her feel the most pleasure she could before he would bite her. She could feel in his mind how he was burning every second into his memory. He was watching her so intently and thought nothing but how much he loved her and how he would die for her.

She never felt so loved in her entire life.

**XXXX**

It was in the wee morning hours that Caius finally ceased his erotic caressing and kisses. He was finally done, and he was ready to turn her. 

“Are you sure?” he asked again for the fifteenth time in the morning.

He was lying on the bed watching her retrieve her underwear and clothes. He looked a little apprehensive, but it didn’t sneak past her when he was blatantly staring at her half naked body.

“Caius,” she growled somewhat annoyed from his insistent checking and lack of sleep. “If you ask me that again I’m going to kill you.”

He chuckled and watched her as she pulled on a pair of shorts and one of his t-shirts.

He rose from the bed and buckled his belt that was cast aside half hazard the night before. He then strode to her and grasped her shoulders tightly. She couldn’t help but marvel at his broad bare chest and large arms.

“I’m going to try to make this less painful for you,” he said seriously. “That being said, it will still hurt more than you can ever imagine. We tried morphine on Felix back in the 80’s and it was burned through and he felt nothing. So we wont waste our time or hope with that. I just don’t want you to be surprised with how horrible this is going to be.”

Suddenly there was a knock on the door and Caius yelled at them to enter. Bella’s eyebrows rose when she saw three vampires she didn’t recognize carrying large blocks of ice and bring it to the bathroom. It was like they had just went to the North Pole and chiseled in out of an iceberg.

When they left the room she looked up at him questioningly. He put his hand on her cheek and read his thoughts. He texted the guards to bring it in. Caius heard from a vampire forty years ago that the turn was less painful for him because he did it in the snow. It was an idea to ease the burning sensation when she was turning.

He sighed and his thoughts drifted to a few hours previous, to when she was arching her back and crying out his name.

Bella felt her cheeks warm and her face flush as she quickly looked to the ground in embarrassment.

He put a finger under her chin and lifted her to look up at him.

“I am really_ really_ going to miss that,” he muttered. 

He was desperately trying to think of anything he forgot to tell her or if he missed anything. He was going through everything said to her to make sure that nothing was left unsaid for the few human minutes she had left.

He told her every compliment in the book, he made her feel loved, he always told her the truth… His mind was almost scrambling, like he was grasping at straws. She realized that for the first time in many years he was panicking.

“Shh...” she said grabbing his face between her hands. “Quiet your mind. It’s alright. I’m ready. You haven’t forgotten anything. You’ve done nothing but made me feel loved and taken care of.”

He swallowed thickly and nodded. She could tell he hated feeling weak like he did now. He pressed his forehead against her own trying to calm himself down. He was worried about her and how she would react. He was worried about the pain she would feel.

“I love you,” he growled fiercely. “More than anyone or anything I have ever met, I love you.”

“I love you too,” she whispered.

He set his jaw and looked her with grave eyes. Very slowly and languidly, he leaned down and sunk his teeth into her neck.

She gasped at the pinch of pain, but then was stunned to feel the warmth and arousal that came hurling at her like a cannonball. She was flooded with even more of his thoughts and emotions. It was much stronger than anything she felt. It was like his soul had crawled into her body and was hugging her from the inside out. She could feel his thirst for her blood and his lust for her body. And he felt the same with her.

They moaned in unison and her hand wound into his hair. His arm was like an iron bar around her waist, holding her to him. Her body trembled and her knees shook. She would have fallen over if it weren’t for him holding her. She realized that she was about to have an orgasm just by his mere touch. She cried out his name and her nails raked into his head. She could feel his cock was hard and pressing into her. He grunted and shook and realized that he just came in his pants.

He gently sucked and it was like a ray of light was shinning directly into her eyes. Something so holy and full of grace she would never understand. It was like their soul’s had been braided into one another and they were even more intertwined in body and spirit. She rode the wave of light until she cried out his name. She could feel he felt the same way.

When he released his teeth from her skin, he licked the wound, sealing it with his venom so she didn’t bleed. For a moment she thought that something went wrong, that she wasn’t going to turn, like she was defective.

Then suddenly, she gasped at the pain that started in her feet and shot up her spine. It felt as though someone was holding her body over a gaslit stove. She squeezed her eyes shut and her legs gave out from under her.

Caius caught her and immediately carried her bridal style. She didn’t know where she was going, all she could focus on was the pain. It was like someone was taking broken glass and spreading the shards into her veins. It was the worst feeling she ever had in her life. 

She felt him gently place her on the bed and she missed the coldness of his arms. Then suddenly he picked her up again and was thankfully greeted by the cold water he prepped. She also realized that he stripped naked so she could feel colder from his body. His mind was set in only cooling her burning skin. That was his mission in his mind.

His mind was like a machine, he had a task and he wasn’t going to get bogged down with feelings and emotions. He knew he needed to act.

He sat behind her in the freezing water and wrapped his arms around her. He kept her fully clothed in the water in case someone barged in. He knew her so well that she would be embarrassed later if someone besides him saw her naked.

_Bella_, he thought at her. _You are too quiet, little one. You can scream, you can thrash, it’s alright. I know the pain you are in. I am here and I will take care of you. _

Apparently, he also knew that loud noises hurt a turning person’s ears. Hence, the nonverbal communication.

_No. I don’t want you to see that. It would be burned in your memory. _

_So stubborn, _he thought irately. _I don’t give a shit how I will feel later. You need to let it out. You will feel better. I promise. _

_No._

Caius verbally sighed and she felt a cool rush of icy water run through her hair. He was filling his hand with water and dropping it on her head to ease the pain as best he could. It did a little, but not a lot.

Caius cussed out loud at his attempt to make her pain lessen considerably.

She clenched her teeth together so hard she thought they would snap. It was like the burning was getting worse and worse as she sat there. She had broken her arm when she was a child, and this was nothing like that. It was nothing like when James had bit her either, it was 100 times worse. She felt nothing but pain with small, very miniscule periods of mild relief from Caius’ ministrations.

She balled her hands into fists and could feel her nails cutting her palms. Her eyes were squeezed shut so tightly that she was seeing stars. She was doing everything in her power to ease the pain and concentrate on not screaming.

_It’s alright, little one, _he cooed while pressing a piece of ice to her temple. _It will be over soon. I love you. Please, just… scream or do something. Anything. I know how much pain you are enduring. There will be more. Much more. Please, it would be better if you let it out. _

She could feel his panic and helplessness in her turning. He wanted so desperately to make the pain stop for her. He felt as though it was his fault. He wanted to help her in any way he could. It went against nature to allow his True Mate to be in pain whilst he stood by.

_You need to release me, _she scolded. _You are feeling my thoughts, my pain. I don’t need you hurting too. I can feel this alone. _

“I will do no such thing!” he snarled quietly in her ear. “You are my mate. I will feel your pain with you. I want to know what you had to sacrifice for me.”

_Caius, _she growled internally. _Please, I don’t want you to feel this. Don’t be a martyr. Just let me go. _

_Tough shit, _he barked in his mind. _I am staying here until you have fully turned. So, get used to it. _

He was actually furious she even suggested such a thing. He was even more furious that she thought he would even go for it for a second.

Her thoughts were quiet after that. He didn’t try and talk to her either. He didn’t try to distract her from the pain as he knew it would be a feeble attempt. It was too powerful. He just continued to place blocks of ice against her burning temple and listened to her focus on not screaming out.

After some time, she asked how long it had been. When he told her it had been six hours she couldn’t stop the moan of pain that echoed in her mind.

He responded by holding her tighter and whispering his love for her.

_It’s alright, little one. It will be over soon. And we will be together. I will never let anything happen to you. I love you more than you will ever know, _he thought furiously.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for le delay! Been crazy crazy times. Hope you enjoy! (This be a bit long folks!)

Caius was more than livid that this was taking so long. In fact, he was downright infuriated.

On the second day he texted the men to bring in more ice. He supposed it looked a little shocking to see a Volturi King sitting naked in an overflooded bath with a trembling fully clothed teenager in his arms, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. Bella was turning and in pain, that was all that mattered right now.

He cooed in her ear when her pain intensified on the second and more still on the third. She was becoming bleary, confused, and she couldn’t remember things in her past. He could read her mind in how scared she was, how she didn’t know which way from up. He assured her and retold her things so she wasn’t left in the dark as to what was real and what was not. This helped tremendously with her mental state, so he took pride that he at least could do that for her.

He never felt like such a cockroach in his life. He wanted nothing more than to take this experience away from his mate.

He swore at her, begged her, bribed her with everything he could think of for her to just… let it out. For her to scream or do _something_. But she held steadfast. She remained maddeningly still, and taut, like the string of a bow.

Her stubborn nature was stronger than he realized.

She didn’t want to worry _him_ or cause _him_ anymore pain. Caius wanted to snort at that.

He had seen some of the most horrific acts of violence over the years and committed them as well. It was almost laughable that she wanted to shield him from this so his feelings weren’t hurt. He didn’t deserve that. He deserved to feel her pain for he was the one that caused it. She was being tortured in front of him and there was nothing but sit through it. 

He wished there was something he could do for her, but there was nothing. He should have mentally prepared himself more then he did. He was not primed for the onslaught of emotions that washed over him when he realized how much pain she was enduring for him. He would gladly take the burning for himself if the God’s would’ve allowed it.

They were finally on the third day of her transition. It was getting to be late in the evening, and he was more than ready to be done with this. It was almost time for this to be over and he was over the moon about it.

He heard her heartbeat pick up to the speed of a helicopter’s wings. He glanced at his watch he knew it was time.

_Bella, _he thought at her. _It’s time, my love. I am so proud of you. You did so well. _

Nothing came in response. He listened to her thoughts and all he could hear was her torture, she thought she was burning alive. She couldn’t focus on his voice or thoughts anymore. She could only feel fire.

He raised her from the freezing water and brought her to his bed, their bed now.

He laid her soaking wet body on the comforter and quickly through on his jeans, not finding time to locate a shirt.

When he turned around he gasped. Having been sat behind her for the whole time he never really got a good look at her face.

He thought she was beautiful before, but now… now she was absolutely _stunning_. She looked less of a teen and more of a woman now. He had to brace his hand on the wall to stop himself from falling over. She was so gorgeous he was almost afraid to touch her.

He could feel her body alternating over the three days, her thighs filled out, her back and arms became more muscular. He saw that her hair had also turned a darker shade of brown, it no longer had the red tinge in it when it was in the sun. But he couldn’t care less. He thought she was perfect the way she was, she didn’t need to have the vampiric sense of perfection.

However, the vampire gene made her look like a deity beyond anything he ever saw.

He saw her heart shaped mouth open and let out a faint gasp.

He decided to let go of her hand and let her have a moment’s clarity when she had turned. She didn’t need his prying mind nagging her when she needed a moment to collect herself. He knew it was disorientating when you first come to as a newborn vampire.

Her back arched and he heard her heartbeat beat remarkably faster. She was lifting herself off the bed with the angle she was lifting.

Caius waited in a defensive crouch. Although he loved her, he knew how volatile newborns could be. He didn’t want to chance her hurting someone in the guard by accident. She would never have forgave herself if she did.

He wasn’t worried about himself though. One perk of being the oldest vampire in the world was that he was stronger than most newborns. All three Kings were. Caius, however, was the strongest of the three.

Then suddenly her heartbeat stopped completely. She was turned fully.

She gasped again but remained still. Like she was waiting for the pain to start up again.

Caius only had so much patience.

“Bella?” he asked. “It’s Caius. I know it’s bewildering. But can you please open your eyes for me?”

She did as he asked and shrieked before she shoved him away with enough force for him to step back three paces.

She jumped off the bed and slammed directly into the wall. She moved to a defensive stance and deafly snarled at Caius. He noticed that the stone wall cracked from her brusque movement. Her red eyes darted to every corner of the room, looking for any more danger.

Caius took a cautious step forward and when she didn’t move, he took another, holding his hands out like he was calming a wild animal.

“Bella,” he crooned. “It’s alright, love. It’s me. You do not need to be frightened. You’re with me.”

He knew calming her down would be easier now that she was turned. He knew she would feel the full magnitude of having a True Mate with vampire senses.

She looked at him with wide red eyes for a moment. She suddenly stood straight up and cocked her head. Completely forgetting her defensiveness.

“Caius?” she asked quietly.

Her voice sounded like bells ringing. It pulled Caius forward like a rope tied tight around his belly.

“Yes, love. It’s me.”

She didn’t move for a minute. Her crimson eyes looked him up and down for a moment as if trying to remember what he looked like. He realized that being shirtless was not a good idea in front of a newborn. Over the many years of battles and wars he had gained a considerable amount of bites that marked his body. His arm had a nasty scar around his bicep from when it was torn off by a newborn in the 1900’s. Bella has asked him about it once and he could hear in her thoughts that it was only slightly noticeable to the human eye. To a vampire, it looked like a horrendous disfigurement.

He knew he looked threatening with all his scars. He looked like danger.

He was stunned when she ran towards him at full vampire speed and slammed into him sending him flying into another wall. He almost got knocked over from the quick movement. She wrapped her arms and legs around him like a backpack on his front. She was still just as short as she was before, so she had to jump up to latch onto him.

Caius firmly wrapped both his arms around her and hoisted her up to hold her. He was a little taken aback by how strong she was. Being one of the oldest vampires and being so in tune with war, he was stronger than most vampires. He was not quite as strong as a newborn, but he was close. Had she been holding Felix or Aro as tight as she was, she would be crushing them.

It was an unbelievable feeling to hold her at his full strength though. It was like he finally didn’t have to keep treating her like a china doll. He could finally throw caution to the wind and let his senses take over.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck and inhaled deeply. He audibly groaned when he did. Her scent was amplified more than it already was. Gone was the mouth-watering feeling of food and replaced was just pure pleasurable aroma. It was nothing like anything he ever felt. It was primal. His mate. That was all he smelled.

“_Mine_,” he growled possessively.

Her thighs tightened painfully around his waist in response. Her touch sent shivers down his spine as she was now the same temperature as he was.

Bella’s thoughts were what he expected of a newborn. They were running a mile a minute and he was having difficulty keeping up. He was surprised that she was so coherent and not so blood crazy as most newborns were. She wasn’t even really thinking about blood. She was thinking of how much she loved him and how she couldn’t stop touching him.

“Caius,” she breathed shakily. “Is… Is this how you felt when we first met? How could you stand it the first few weeks? How could you stand not touching me? This feeling… it’s like nothing I’ve ever had before. It feels like being near you is… impulse. Instinct.”

She was practically purring the words to him while inhaling him deeply as well. He could feel her emotions and how intense it was for her. Caius was both relieved and flattered that she felt so deeply for him. 

“It was difficult,” he whispered into her ear. “Painful even. But you’re here now and that’s all that matters.” 

“It feels like I am a part of you,” she whispered pulling back so she could look him in the eye.

Her bright red eyes had flecks of the original brown in them. Nothing anyone would notice unless they got this close her. Her face was now more angled, more sculpted and lost its childish roundness. He didn’t really notice before as he was so concerned with her health.

She was gorgeous.

She frowned a little and raised her hand to run her thumb over a scar he had on his temple. He received that bite 274 years ago during the crusade through Romania.

Her concerns crashed into in waves as she looked through him. He was a little taken aback by the onslaught of emotions he was feeling through her. It was giving him whiplash.

“Why can’t I remember you having any scars? You have so many…”

Caius had to clear his throat once before he could answer.

“You were human, love. You couldn’t have seen them they were so pale. Do they scare you?”

She shook her head. “At first they did. But then I remembered that you’re you. They make me… angry that you were hurt though.”

Caius nodded and walked them over to the chesterfield to sit. It wasn’t that he was uncomfortable, he wanted to feel her full weight on his lap. It was his favourite spot for her to sit.

“Yes,” he murmured sitting with his hands on her hips. “That is the bond. You feel protective of me as I do you. Now do you understand my anger with the Cullen boy?”

She looked at him confused and then let out a frustrated growl. “I… I… I don’t remember all of it. I mean, I remember, but everything’s all foggy and… argh!”

He could see what she remembered through their bond. It was indeed foggy, but she remembered it for the most part. She was having a typical newborn vampiric overreaction to frustration.

He shushed her and ran his fingers through her silky hair.

“Don’t be upset, love. It’s alright. Here…”

He interlaced his fingers with her own and showed her his memories. He didn’t want her to be upset with herself because she couldn’t see through clear eyes.

It seemed the need to please her only intensified with her turning.

He showed her everything he could since he met her. Every thought, every feeling, every memory, every moment, everything since the time she walked through the door of the guard. He refused to let her be in the dark about her own life. He wanted her to take control of everything.

“Oh…” she breathed in seeing his thoughts.

The process really only took a minute or two. But when he reached the point of when they had their time at the villa, he lingered on the details. He didn’t ever want her to forget their time there. He especially wanted her to remember their beautiful memories of making love and the playfulness of the vacation.

“Oh, Caius,” she whimpered before her lips came crashing down to his own.

And he kissed her back. He kissed her just as hard as he wanted to for the last few months they knew each other. He was still taken aback by how much he was truly holding back.

“Bella,” he choked out stopping her hands from sliding under his shirt. “Come now, love. We have plenty of time for that later. Right now we must do our diligence and get you fed and then show you to Aro. He will want to see if your powers have been transferred to your immortal self.”

Caius knew that it would be difficult keeping his appearance of ruthless leader when Bella was around him. He knew she was his only real weakness. He knew that Aro would see how soft he could be when Bella was concerned, and it annoyed him to no end.

At least the rest of the world would think nothing changed with him. They would only see that he took on a new wife. He and the guard would spin it in a way that would show that he was just bored of his previous wife.

Caius untangled himself from her and stood. He quickly crossed the room and finally found a black t-shirt that would have to do for the time being. 

“Come,” he said motioning her to follow him.

He walked at full speed and she followed a little uneasily. He was glad there was no one else in the halls or around them as he made his way to the feeding room.

He opened the heavy double doors to a small group of teenagers that were no doubt lured in with the promise of hallucinogenics or some other illegal substance.

Bells stared at them wide-eyed. Her bright red eyes didn’t waiver from them, but she also didn’t even try to move. She stood as still as an oak tree.

Caius was floored. Most newborns would run at full speed to these bags of blood. Most would not even be able to contain themselves at the mere whiff of human scent.

But there she stood, staring at them as if she were uncertain of what to do.

“Bella,” Caius prodded softly making her eyes finally snap away from the group of confused youngsters. “Follow your instincts. Do what God created us for.”

For a moment she still didn’t move. And then she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.

She lunged at the humans, grabbing one by the hair while she sunk her teeth into another.

Caius smiled slowly as he watched his mate drain the younf girl with pink hair before moving onto the boy. The two other boys screamed and tried to run, but Caius grabbed them both by the scruff of their necks and easily restrained them. He wanted to hold out his mate’s food while she ate for the first time.

She never looked so glorious as she did now.

When she was finished with the two she blurred over to him and sunk her teeth into the third human. Caius still held onto the last screaming survivor, waiting. When she drained the boy and reached for the fourth, Caius stood behind her with his lips on her neck and felt her emotions surge through her during her first feed. He hummed as he reminisced about his first time and was thrilled to be here for hers.

He couldn’t help but feel the swelling in his pants at her sexily wet body arched at the pleasure of the newfound blood. He gripped her hips tightly and pressed her further into his body. He knew she couldn’t feel him right now, not when she was so engulfed in the pleasure of the feed.

Caius, however, relished in her pleasure. It was nothing like he ever felt before. It reached beyond the realm of sex, it was cosmic intervention in feeling his mate’s pleasure.

When she finished he was fully hard. He let his erection press into her back. He wanted her to know that watching his mate feed aroused him. He wanted her to know that she was the most beautiful thing he ever saw.

She dropped the lifeless body carelessly and turned in his arms and looked up at him with big crimson eyes. Her heart-shaped mouth was upturned in amusement and arousal. He noticed she had blood on her chin and at the corners of her mouth. He swooped down and licked it off her skin, making her purr in response. He wasted no time in plunging his tongue into her mouth, tasting the blood she consumed.

The kiss got out of hand before Caius even knew what was happening. One moment they were innocently kissing, and the next he realized his hands were under her shirt and thumbing the pert nipples that he had yet to see.

He ripped himself away from her and gave her a gentle push away to collect himself.

He was breathing through his mouth and out his nose as she looked up at him in bewilderment. She was confused and a little hurt that he pushed her away so callously.

He chuckled and quickly smoothed his hair and adjusted his pants.

“Come, now love. It means nothing, I just don’t think it’s appropriate to take you on the floor of a public space when we are scheduled to see Aro regarding your change.”

He held out his arm and she took it eagerly, the bond seemed to increase her want to be near him tenfold and he could not be happier.

He couldn’t wait to show her off to the world.

As his woman, his wife, and his mate.


	20. Chapter 20

_Why is it so fucking loud in here? _Bella growled internally.

The loud echoes of footsteps and voices throughout the castle hurt her ears. She couldn’t believe that she didn’t notice it before. It was horrendous. She could even hear the cars and motorcycles from the city.

Caius was walking at a normal vampire pace in front of her. It was obvious he was in a hurry to show her new state to Aro, although she had no idea why. It wasn’t like they were going anywhere. He seemed adamant on showing her off as soon as she opened her eyes after the change.

A small part of her was hurt that he had pushed her away in his bedroom, and then again in the feeding room. She felt angry that he was acting so flippant with her emotions. He seemed more concerned about Aro than he was about her.

She also knew that she was overacting because of the change. Jasper had told her repeatedly that newborns could not hold themselves in check and that their tempers were horrendous. She was shocked that when she ran at Caius that he grunted in pain from her holding him so tight. She was a little proud she could make a Voltueri King almost fall over from her advances.

Caius increased his step towards the two heavy oak doors that led into the throne room. Bella almost asked if they could do this another time as she hated being fussed over.

Over the last few months she got to know Aro and understood he had a flare for the dramatics. She knew this would be no exception. He would be tickled that she was turned and probably make it into some big event that she would want no part of.

Caius turned towards her and frowned. He quickly started shrugging off his robes and gestured for her to come to him. Bella walked forward with no hesitation and was warmed when he draped his giant cloak over her still-wet body.

She didn’t realize it until now, but her shirt was completely transparent revealing her black lace bra. Had Caius not covered her, Aro and the rest of the guard would get a very good look at how much she truly changed. She also didn’t realize she was wearing a pair of very small black athletic shorts and no shoes or socks. She figured she probably looked a right mess.

“Thank-you,” she mumbled quietly.

She usually hated the sound of her own voice. But since the change she was pleasantly surprised that she no longer sounded like a meek little lamb. She sounded more like a woman.

Caius nodded sternly but offered no other response.

Of course she always knew Caius was a larger man. But it wasn’t until her change when she realized he was enormous. He towered over her small frame and had the body of an Olympian in the 1700’s. He looked more like he belonged in a colosseum fighting a live tiger with a spear rather than a man in the 21st century. His attitude and demeanour were no different. He was always strong and silent, but right now she did feel a little neglected. She knew he was focused on something else at the moment, but still.

He opened the two heavy doors and walked inside. Her bare feet echoed against the cobblestone floor and she actually took a double take at seeing Caius’ two brothers sitting before her with big smiles on their faces.

Felix and Jane flanked both their sides, looking at her apprehensively. She figured they knew she was a threat to the two lords. Part of her wondered why Caius didn’t get his own bodyguard.

She instantly ducked behind Caius’ massive body and clutched his arm in panic. They looked daunting and she was almost too scared to look at them. For some reason though, she knew Caius would protect her. She wasn’t scared of him, even though he had far more scars then either of them combined.

_Bella_, he said through their bond making her gasp.

She forgot that he could talk to her through their minds. It was overwhelming.

_Come out, little one. Don’t fear your family. They will not hurt you. They only want to look at you._

She quietly peered over his mammoth shoulder and saw Marcus’s small, almost nonexistent smile, and Aro’s giggling.

“My! Isabella, you look gorgeous! Vampire suits you very beautifully, my dear,” he said while clapping his hands together like a child. “Don’t worry, child. Come! We obviously won’t hurt you. I want to see if your mind is still resistant to me.”

She didn’t realize it, but she was pressing herself into Caius and clutching his shirt with fists. He gently pried her fingers off his clothes and she craned her neck up to look at him in panic. He was looking down at her with general amusement and… something else. He looked almost… angry?

_Not angry,_ he said through his mind. _I don’t want you leaving my side anymore than you do. But you must go to him. He will not harm you, he just wants to see if he can read your mind._

She nodded and hugged the massive cloak around her body. She quickly ran to Aro and stood before him with her hand outstretched.

He enthusiastically pressed his bony finger against her palm for a fraction of a second before he burst into laughter.

Bella suddenly felt an irrational surge of anger and rage flow from her scalp to her toes.

_Why is he **laughing** at me?_ She practically roared in her mind.

_He’s not, il mio piccolo_, Caius thought at her, calming her. _He’s laughing at the situation. You are perfect._

“A shield for a warrior!” Aro practically squealed in delight. “What a beautiful pairing indeed!”

“What do you mean?” Caius demanded from behind them.

Bella looked over her shoulder and saw (and felt in their bond) that Caius looked perturbed. His hands were clenched into fists and his jaw was set. He looked more like the Voluteri leader she first met rather than then man she had gotten to know so well over their time together.

“Oh, Caius!” Aro sighed in amusement. “I still can’t get anything out of her. Jane?”

“NO!” Caius snarled at Jane, clearly undermining Aro’s direct order to his favourite guard member. He was in a defensive crouch in under a second and Bella almost stepped back at how dangerous he looked. He was an experienced fighter, that much was clear, but she didn’t know how much of a readily willing warrior he truly was.

Jane looked at Caius in boredom and rolled her eyes.

“Relax, Caius,” she drawled. “I can’t do anything. I could sense it since she first walked in. She is a shield as Aro claims.”

Caius snorted and retracted his stance unwillingly.

“She is still a mental shield from both my, and Jane’s powers. What a lovely little addition to our family!” Aro said.

Bella couldn’t believe that this was her power. She was a little put out that she didn’t get a power that was as neat ad Edward’s or Alice’s. A shield? How much use could that possibly be?

“She will begin training immediately. Jane will be her teacher,” he announced.

Bella looked to Jane in fear and Jane gave her a small smile and light shrug. It was apparent that Bella’s time away and subsequent change had Jane warming up to her a little. This was probably a good thing considering they would living under the same roof. 

“Are you done?” Caius growled nodding at Bella’s hand still under Aro’s finger.

“What? You miss her holding your hand?” Felix goaded, clearly enjoying the drama.

Bella’s head snapped to Felix and she had to fight the urge to throw a table at him. It was obvious she was going to have to check her temper everyday for the first year. She didn’t want to hurt anybody. She saw Jane’s smile widen in her peripheries.

“Go, my dear,” Aro said ignoring Felix altogether and pulling his hand away.

Bella quickly skidded to Caius’ side and unabashedly pressed her face into his chest and clutched his shirt. She was warmed beyond content when he wrapped his heavy arm around her waist and rubbed her side. She was finally getting the physical attention she so oh so craved since she first opened her eyes.

“I think it would be best that we leave for a few months while I teach her our ways,” Caius started quietly.

Marcus raised a delicate brow in skepticism. “No one else had to do such a thing. Jane and Felix both stayed for their first year. Why should Bella be any different?”

“_Because_,” Caius growled with his grip tightening. “She is the mate of a King. She need not be stuck here with the trivialities of the day to day operations.”

“I agree with Marcus,” Aro said dismissively. “She will stay. You’ve been hogging her enough, Caius. It is time she gets fully integrated into the guard. She will not be like the other wives, unless, she so chooses?”

Caius put his hand gently under her chin and forced her to look up at him. Bella practically quivered from the miniscule contact. She could see his big red eyes perfectly at this angle. He was so beautiful in practically took her breath away.

_Do you want to stay in the tower with the other wives?_ He asked through the bond. _Or would you like to be apart of the guard as Aro’s shield? It is up to you, you do not belong to him. You are not, and never will be a prisoner. You have a choice. _

_I want to be with you_, she thought meekly. She was a little embarrassed that she was coming across as being needy. She was clinging onto him like a leech for Christ sake! But when she tried to release him and give him some space, his arm only tightened around her.

Caius smiled a fraction and gave her another curt nod. It was still obvious that he wanted this meeting with Aro over a done with.

“She will be in the guard for as long as she chooses,” Caius said. “Jane may teach her the capacity of her powers. But all other teachings will be done through myself, unless Bella would like a different instructor.”

“Caius,” Aro said with an eyeroll. “Is that really necessary? We have tutors that more than willing –”

“– that is final,” Caius barked harshly. It was clear that his leniency would only be stretched so far and Aro was pushing the boundaries of their bond. Bella was both flattered and a little put out.

“She is not another guard you can throw to the wind. She is a mate of a King and will be treated as such.”

Bella glared up at him. He was being demanding and embarrassing her. She wasn’t looking for special treatment. She let this be known in their bond but Caius kept his poker face with the rest of the guard.

Aro sighed but finally agreed.

After a few more minor details were discussed they were finally dismissed.

She didn’t ask questions when Caius led her out of the throne room. She just stayed latched onto him, trusting her mate completely in taking her wherever they were going.

“Are you still thirsty, il mio piccolo? I don’t want you in pain,” he asked so quietly that only they would be heard in the building.

“I think I’m okay,” she answered quietly.

Now that she was finally turned, she didn’t know what to do with herself. She felt her confidence around him slightly diminish. She really didn’t understand how powerful he was until now. She was slightly shy around him.

“Then we’ll retire to our room,” he said lacing his fingers with her own. “It’s been far too eventful over the past week for my liking.”

Once they reached his doors he tugged her inside and kicked the door shut. She was still hugging the large robe around her arms to cover her modesty. She was still wet, and the shirt was clinging to her skin. It wasn’t cold or uncomfortable, it just felt odd. Undoubtedly her underwear would still be visible under the shirt.

She looked around the room and realized that while they were away, someone cleaned. The puddles on the floor were mopped up and the bedding was changed, and the vanity that had broken bottles on it were replaced. She could still see the cracks in the stone wall though. A part of her felt bad about ruining such old walls.

Caius chuckled whole heartedly; his cold demeanour switched off now that they were alone.

“You need not feel bad about putting a crack in a wall. We had to redo the entire east wing when Felix had first turned. His temper was far worse than yours is now, love.”

He walked slowly towards her wrapped his fingers around the back of her neck and while his other hand clutched her chin.

“I am actually curious about that,” he murmured.

“What do you mean?” she asked trying to ignore the way his fingers felt on her skin.

He smiled warmly and let his thumb swipe over bottom lip making her shiver. “I am a little astounded that you’re so calm. Even when you were feeding you were in control. I am waiting for you rip someone apart and time and time again you seem to be acting like a vampire that is years old rather than hours old. It is a little shocking, love.”

She raised a shoulder to her ear in bewilderment. She had no idea how she was supposed to be acting.

“It’s a good thing, little one,” he assured her. “It means I get to enjoy you more as yourself rather than a hungry animal. Though I did enjoy watching you let loose while you fed.”

If she could’ve blushed, she would have. She knew he liked watch her feed on the humans. It was evident in his body when he was pressing himself against her. He thought it was erotic.

He clearly could feel through the bond in her bashfulness and uncertainty around him now that she was fully turned. She didn’t know how to act around him now that she could see him fully. It was like she was meeting him all over again and she was a little intimidated by his strength and governance.

He chuckled and suddenly wrapped a steel arm around her waist, yanking her closer to him. His other hand kept a firm grip on her chin, still forcing their eye contact.

“You need not be afraid, little one. It’s still me.”

“I know,” she mumbled awkwardly.

He chuckled and leaned down for a kiss. She felt the same zing that she did when she first did, only this time he was not holding back or trying to push her away.

His arm tightened almost painfully strong around her waist. His hand moved from her chin and fisted into the roots of her hair. She growled, but not in anger, but arousal.

Her hands slid up his chest and wrapped around his neck. She didn’t realize how far down he had to reach her lips, but when he started to rise to his full height, she was more than aware that her feet were dangling by his shins as he lifted her off the ground.

She pulled away so she could breath, not out of necessity, but out of the sheer need to have his scent in her lungs again.

Caius’ lips moved to her neck, kissing an nipping his way to her collarbone.

“Fuck, Bella,” he groaned. “I can still smell my venom in your veins. It’s like you have a piece of my inside you. It’s… _intoxicating_.”

She couldn’t help the smile that formed slowly. He was looking up at her with such attraction and admiration that all shyness had crept away.

“I can still smell myself all over you, too,” she hummed caressing his face with her perfectly manicured fingers. “I suppose I look different to you now as well.”

He closed his eyes and leaned into her touch when suddenly he stopped and looked up at her.

“You haven’t seen yourself yet,” he said to himself with a frown.

“What do you mean? Hey! What are you doing!” she complained when he put her down on her feet. He quickly took her hand and pulled her towards the bathroom.

“Come,” he said gruffly while tugging on her hand impatiently. “Forgive me for being so callous, my love. I never even put you in front of a mirror to see how much you’ve changed!”

He flicked the light on and Bella actually heard herself gasp. Caius was towering behind her with his hands on her shoulders, gently kneading into her flesh to ease any tension.

She looked… different. Beautiful even.

“You were always beautiful,” he said kissing the top of her head. “Now you are just a bit more durable so I don’t have to worry about breaking you.”

She chuckled and was surprised that it came out sounding like a bell. She was still so green to all of this, she didn’t know how to take it all. It was almost overwhelming. She felt like her emotions were taking over her body and all rational thought was gone. It was like she wasn’t in control of herself anymore.

“Shush, little one,” he murmured turning her away from the mirror. “Quiet your mind. I’m here and nothing will happen to you.”

His face was void of any anger or mild contempt like it was in the throne room. Right now, there was only concern and love, this calmed her mind a great deal.

He swooped back down and kissed her again. Only this time, it was much gentler and softer. She could feel he was also a mixed bag of emotions right now. He was scared, happy, elated, excited, worried, and furious all at the same time.

“If you feel overwhelmed again, just count to ten and remember something that makes you happy. If sounds foolish but it does help. Believe me.”

She nodded again and put her hands on either side of his face. She thumped the scar on his neck and looked up at him with worry.

“Throat was slit open in 2009 A.D.,” he explained with a slight shrug.

“How?”

He cleared tucked her hair behind her ear and evaluated her for a moment before telling her. “They had developed a sword made from vampire teeth. Quite smart actually. It’s mounted up on the wall in our bedroom.”

He nodded to the wall of various weapons to the left of their bed. He gently pushed her ahead of him and walked behind her with his hands on her hips.

When they stood before the wall he let his hands run down from her shoulders to wind around her ribs from behind.

“That’s it there,” he said pointing lazily to the sward with jagged teeth bound to the blade.

His lips went to her ear and he pointed to another sword. “That one is made from wolf’s teeth. Not quite as effective, but still a good innovation for it’s time.”

She shivered in feeling his warm breath against her neck and ear. He kept talking about the bits of weapons on the wall, but she wasn’t paying attention. He probably knew that, as he too was distracted. His hands unabashedly removed the cloak and threw it halfhazardly to the chair in the corner. His hands began exploring her new body and were unapologetically feeling her thighs, her breasts, everything, but he kept blabbering on about the various items. She could even feel his swelling manhood pressing against her back.

“Cauis?” she asked interrupting him turning her neck to look him in the eye.

“Yes?” His chest was heaving up and down and he looked quite breathless. He also had the shadow of a smirk playing around his lips.

“Can you shut up?”

He chuckled and nodded into her neck before scooping her into his arms and carrying her to the big bed. He dropped her on the mattress and jumped on top of her. He lifted the hem of her shirt so he could run his nose from her naval to her ribs and back again.

She ran her fingers through his silken hair gratefully. She loved the feel of his hair when was human and it was only amplified now. She moaned when his tongue slid across the skin above the waistband of her shorts.

“Caius,” she breathed.

He impatiently ripped her shirt in two and discarded both pieces to the floor. He crawled back up her body, licking and nibbling on her skin along his way before he made it to her mouth.

“You are so beautiful,” he murmured. “I love you.”

Bella couldn’t help the choke of a sob escape her lips. She couldn’t shed a tear for her happiness anymore. But she could feel Caius’ joy in her turning and being with him.

“I love you too,” she whimpered. “Forever.”


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> otay, this one is looonnnggg, but I promised myself this one would only be 22 chapters, and that is what i shall do! Comments and kudos keep me trucking, so please do if you feel this deserves it! 
> 
> Almost in the home stretch! 
> 
> -bebe
> 
> Also, it has been brought to my attention that someone has plagiarized this piece on fanfiction. They go by the name High Admiral Greer. Please ignore them or call them out on their blatant disrespect for new authors trying to flex their writing muscles through this platform.

“Where are you going?”

Bella rolled her eyes at him before answering. “We have to get up.”

“No, we don’t.”

“Caius.”

“Stop your squirming and come here,” Caius growled.

Caius reached for her hand and yanked her back down to the bed. He let her fall on top of him and he rolled, pinning her tiny body beneath his larger one.

They’d spent the last three days getting to know each other’s bodies. For her, it was an exploration with new eyes. For him, it was entirely new territory as he was only recently introduced to her latest form. He was pleased with the way she turned, he loved her more than anyone else in his entire existence, but he did miss the deep blush that would spread across her face and bosom when she was still human.

He had to admit he liked that she kept her stature throughout the transition. If anything it just made her more beautiful.

Since her change Caius ordered marked guards at every available door, window, and crack in the entire building. She thought he was overdoing it, but he didn’t budge. He refused to have Edward fucking Cullen come within two meters of his mate.

He placed feather light kisses across her cheeks and down her neck. He paid special attention to his bite mark on her neck. He knew that this mark would stay with her forever, eternally marking her as belonging to another. This satisfied his more primal tendencies with his True Mate.

“Caius,” she breathed.

He loved it when she said his name like that. Her new voice was submerged in the erotic promise of future touches and caresses. 

“Caius,” she said again with a little more iron behind it. “We seriously need to get up.”

“But why?” he whined pulling back a few inches to look her in the eye. “Aro will call us when he needs us. We don’t need to dote on him hand and foot. He can survive a few more days without us.”

Her once brown eyes, now blood red, were looking up at him in humorous reprimand. Her heart-shaped mouth had a slight hitch in the corner, indicting she thought his incessant whinging was comical. Her dark hair was splayed around her head like some gothic halo that Caius couldn’t stop touching.

He idly wondered if he would be able to control himself in the throne room with her by his side. He doubted he would have the patience to commit to the tedious day to day operations of the guard without touching her eventually. He made a mental note to speak to Aro on the subject. Aro and his wife were never together throughout the day and Caius wondered if it were as painful as he imagined being away from Bella would be. True Mates were wired to be together constantly, a concept Caius thought was weak until now.

“I have no doubt that he can,” Bella answered pulling him from his thoughts. “But we have a job to do and we can’t just lay in bed all day.”

“I miss the villa,” Caius muttered under his breath before heaving himself off the bed. He knew she was right. But he didn’t really care. He wanted more time with her.

His eyes raked up and down his mate’s naked body and had to fight the urge to pounce back on top of her. She was leaning back on her elbows looking up at him. The sun was shining through the curtains, making her skin sparkle, also making her look more like a goddess than a vampire.

They spent the first few days of her turning to really appreciate her new body and soul. They made love for almost three days straight before now. Now, they had a duty. A duty that Caius was all to glad to ignore.

Apparently Bella had other ideas.

“Do I have any clothes in here?” she asked meekly before she stood before him.

Her dark hair flowed down her back and chest, blocking his view of her breasts. But that didn’t stop him from grabbing her hips and pulling her forward so he could attack her neck again.

“I think I prefer to see you this way,” he murmured against her porcelain skin.

She laughed and swatted him on the shoulder. “And do you want Felix and the rest of the guard to see me this way?”

He chuckled and playfully pushed her to the closet with a swat to her bottom.

“Clothes were moved to the closet, love. And hurry up and get dressed before I drag you back to our bed. You are far too enticing for your own good.”

She snorted in disbelief but walked to the closet with Caius watching. He enjoyed the view and didn’t think he would ever get his fill of watching her swaying hips walking away from him.

He quickly brushed out his sex tousled hair and dressed in his typical Voulteri garb. He both hated and admired that she was so keen on starting her training. He wanted to stay in bed with her, but he knew the sooner she learned their ways the sooner they could walk about freely without the constant scrutiny of the guard.

When she emerged from the massive walk-in closet, she had piled her hair into a bun at the top of her head. She had black jeans with a white button-down shirt that was tucked beneath a brown belt. The outfit really showcased her hourglass figure quite beautifully. He was a little annoyed that it would be covered by the big ugly robes the guard was forced to wear.

“You look gorgeous, il mia amore,” he said blurring over to her and taking her shoulders in his hands.

“You know, if you keep saying that as often as you do its going to lose its meaning, right?” she said smiling up at him while winding her arms around his neck.

He was surprised when her inhuman strength jerked him down for a quick kiss. He was still getting used to her being a vampire so it was a bit shocking when she displayed her true self. It barely registered with him that she was even a newborn. She displayed the characteristics of a three-year-old vampire rather than a three-day old.

“Nonsense,” he said rubbing his hands up and down her sides. “Come, we’ll get you fed and then you’ll begin your training with me.”

He offered her his arm and she took it without hesitation. He began walking towards the feeding room excitedly. In the last three days their meals were brought to them. He got to watch her loose the steady control she had if only for a brief moment. He enjoyed it, watching her embrace her animalistic side.

After they fed (complete with Caius’ incessant pawing at her until she giggled and told him to stop) they finally made it to one of the battlements for her first lesson. He was more than aware that she was nervous about being in such an open space. He knew newborns were like this, nervous and ready to run at any given moment.

_Quiet your mind, little one. I am here and nothing will happen to you,_ he thought at her.

She jumped and then glared at him for surprising her. She was still getting used to it all and he imagined it was overwhelming for her. He chastised himself for giving too much too soon. Especially for a newborn.

“I’m sorry,” he said genuinely.

“it’s okay,” she said rubbing her temples. “Everything is just so… loud. All the time. Does it ever stop?”

Caius shook his head. “No, but you learn to control it. You can tune things out after a few months of practise. I will show that to you later. For now though, I need to teach you how to fight.”

Bella’s eyes went as wide as saucers, but she nodded in response. He imagined she never fought anyone in her short life. She would never have reason to. She was a good person who came from a loving family. Fighting was not a necessity for her survival.

“What do you know of combat?” he asked curiously.

“Nothing. Besides what you told me over the last few months.”

He felt her tremendous feeling of inadequacy and embarrassment and he couldn’t help but chuckle.

_My dear, no one would expect you to know how to fight. It is nothing to feel embarrassed about,_ he thought at her.

_I just don’t want to disappoint you,_ she thought back.

“You could never,” he growled taking her face in between his hands. “Now, let me show you some basics. We will build off that over the next few months or two and get you up to speed. When I feel like you are ready, I’ll take great pleasure in sicking you on Felix. I have been waiting quite a while for a new guard member to kick his ass.”

Bella laughed and swatted his hands away playfully.

**XXXX**

For the next few months Caius taught her some simple fighting techniques that he taught all the guards. He also taught her extra moves that would be beneficial for her surivial. These were moved he typically didn’t teach the others, because he thought it better they get injured and learn themselves. However, he was taking no chances with his mate. He would die before he would let her go into a battle with no tools to defend herself.

He was impressed that she was such a quick learner. He was more impressed that she knew to use her newfound strength to her advantage. Every time he would flip her on her back, she wouldn’t let hit happen in the same way again. She was pivotal in learned defences and he learned this was her strength in hand to hand combat.However, when did flip her over, he would make a point of groping her breast or bottom. She would always laugh in response and call him incorrigible. He wanted to make it fun for her rather than take it so seriously.

She also was present for some of the guard meetings, but only as an observer. It was clear she was nervous, but Caius assured her that she would do well.

He made a point of telling Aro in front of the entire staff that she was to stand right next to his throne rather than the usual spot behind the three Kings. Caius may have let Aro decide where and when she would be training, but he made no effort to even pretend to regard him when it came to where she was positioned in the guard. She was his top priority. Aro didn’t need to touch Caius’ hand to understand. He too experienced the pull of a True Mate and knew the complications that came with it. 

During the meetings he would speak to her through the bond. Day after day she heard vampires plead their case and Caius would explain to her the Voluteri’s rulings and why they granted some requests and denied others. She would listen dutifully and would ask many questions. All of which was done silently between the two. He too, was only getting used to the bond and was often distracted by her. He would also have to learn to control his senses when she was around, but for the moment, he appreciated the company in his head. She offered interesting and often merciful opinions, all of which he found insightful when casting his vote.

Caius also had an eye on the perimeter of the castle. He refused to think Cullen had given up in his fleeting attempts to capture her after a few mere months. He was annoyed that the boy still had not been found, even after a week of his most trusted hunters looking for him. He supposed it was because he had the aid of the future seer combined with his abilities to read minds.

Every evening, after all the vampires were punished and their cases were heard, and after she completed her combative training with him, and then her powers training with Jane, he would leave her in their room so he could get status reports from his trackers across Italy. They found a scent that belonged to the Cullen brat, but continued to lose it amongst the treelines due to the rain. He imagined the clairvoyant could inform her brother of when exactly it would rain to aid him.

This was really the only time he left her side. Even during her training with Jane, he stood at the side.

The first time she trained with Jane was awful. He watched as Jane zapped his mate and he couldn’t stop the ferocious snarl the first time. After Bella scolded him in their bond, he tampered it down to a small growl. After these sessions he hated Jane. He wanted to tear her head off. Bella, on the other hand, seemed to grow more and more fond of Jane and tell her how much she appreciated her help. The two women actually began joking around with one another, even bringing Jane as far as inviting her on a feeding trip she planned outside the castle walls.

Caius rejected it immediately. He gave the excuse that Edward Cullen was still lurking around, and Bella would not be safe. But the real reason was because Bella would be away from his reach. He was still too nervous to have her away from him. Not necessarily for safety reasons, but more because his mating instincts were too strong. It would cause him discomfort to have her away from him.

In any case, both women pouted over his decision, but accepted it none the less. He knew the second that Edward was caught, Jane and Bella would be spending more time with each other and Caius would not be invited.

He and Bella even already had a fight about how she and Jane were already making plans to site see in the city.

“I can hear you two conspiring against me,” Caius grumbled accusingly after they retired to their chambers. “I could hear both your plots, I heard her say as soon as _he_ is captured, and you’re out of danger, she’s taking you away from me.”

“For one _day_, Caius,” she said rolling her eyes. “It’s not like we’re planning to overthrow the guard. We just want a day to hang out and see the city.”

Caius snorted and whipped around to face her. “Did I not show you the city already? What more could you _possibly_ want to see?”

She stared at him with her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow. “Does this mean that if I’m with you I’m not allowed to have friends?”

Caius exhaled through his nose and glared at the celling. He shouldn’t have said anything at all. He should have just grinned and bared it.

“_No_,” he growled. “That’s not what I’m saying at all. I just… When you’re away from me It makes me… uncomfortable. You two chat all the time anyway! You don’t need to do it outside these walls.”

She smiled adoringly and glided over to him. At this point he had turned away from her and was glaring out the window overlooking the city. She wrapped her arms around his waist and placed her cheek against his back.

He refused to unfold his arms.

“I know you worry about me, Caius. I can feel it through the bond,” she murmured softly. “But if you lock me in a tower, I will kill you.”

Despite himself, he chuckled.

He knew this. He knew he was acting like a child in trying to keep her to himself. It still annoyed him though.

“I know you don’t need to be babysat,” he mumbled after a long period of silence. “I just want to make sure you’re safe.”

“Do you think I won’t be safe with Jane?” she asked running her hands up and down his arms soothingly. “She’s probably the most effective bodyguard on the planet.”

He snorted, a little put out that she thought Jane was a better protector than he was. After that conversation, he knew to keep his mouth shut about the whole ordeal. It was true, she would be safe with Jane. He still didn’t like her being away from him for so long though.

After that day she seemed to saunter around the castle more casually without his assistance. It aggravated him that she was less reliant on him, but it pleased him that she was becoming more comfortable around the castle. She was making it her home.

Their evenings were full of walks throughout the gardens, feeding on tourists, followed by passionate lovemaking until the sun rose. It was a state of bliss for both. He could hear her thoughts and learned that she was at her happiest when they were alone together. He enjoyed that far more than he was willing to admit.

He would always be annoyed when she would make him get dressed and cease his initial petting and attentions. He did think he could’ve accomplished teaching her the ways of the guard away from the castle and would’ve had more fun with her if he did so. It seemed as soon as the sun shone his mood was soured because he knew he would have to share her attentions.

Aro was right, Caius did want to hog her all to himself.

Three months had passed since they last saw Edward and Caius was beginning to think that the wench had ran off finally. He wasn’t worried if the boy would find her, she was rarely alone.

He was worried that he would pop up somewhere and embarrass the guard in some gargantuan gesture in displaying his vampiric powers for the public. Or worse, coax her into getting alone with him by using her feelings against her. Even though she was turned and committed to Caius, she was still herself. She still had a heart that was pure and forgiving. It was simply her nature.

Bella was a good person. Even after turning. He knew without asking her that she would try to convince the boy to leave her be. She would try to get him to see reason before she would ever resort to violence.

It was one reason he was in love with her. It was another reason he was worried beyond belief.

**XXXX**

Today would be a rough one. Today, she was training with Jane and Felix while he was to be attending other matters with Aro. This meant that they would be separated for the first time since she turned.

Caius stood leaning against the bathroom door frame watch her as she braided her hair. Caius found it fascinating. Her fingers expertly laced through each lock, weaving it into a gorgeous silken rope that swung just beneath her breasts. She was wearing simple black jumper and navy tights with sneakers. Caius flexed his hands and remembered the feel of her hips as she swayed above him a few hours previously.

She seemed excited to finally be able to train with Felix after months and months of him goading the two of them and their sex life. Caius was slightly put out that he didn’t get to watch. He was also a wee bit irked that she was more excited to train with Felix than she was with him,

“Oh my _god_, Caius,” she said rolling her eyes and twisting the elastic around the second braid. “You really need to chill out. I like training with the both of you.”

Caius snorted and pushed himself off the door frame. He was still learning how to close some thoughts off to her, clearly unsuccessfully as it was obvious she could hear all his ponderings.

“I don’t know what you mean by, _chill out_. But I think it is silly that you’re this excited to train with that buffoon.”

She smiled at him through the mirror and zipped up her jumper.

“Are you jealous?”

“No,” he lied.

She grinned and turned only to leap into his arms from several feet away, latching her arms and legs around him like a monkey.

He caught her easily, but still grunted when she slammed into him like a battering ram.

She seemed to enjoy her newfound strength and agility and took to it like a duck to water. She still had the ability to shock him with how playful she truly was. Caius loved it.

“I think,” she began while nuzzling his neck. “That you need to relax. Because I’m pretty sure the entire castle heard what you can do to me behind closed doors.”

Caius chuckled darkly and squeezed the back of her thighs possessively.

She then began nipping at his ear, something they both learned aroused Caius immensely.

“Don’t start something you can’t finish, little one,” he growled. “You keep that up, I’ll lock you in here for another round.”

She giggled girlishly but released her legs to be dropped down. Caius, however, still held her so her feet were dangling by his shins.

“Put me down, honey,” she said with a laugh. “Or we’re going to be late!”

He grinned and kissed her on the mouth hungrily. He still didn’t get his fill of her even though he made love to her for well over eight hours last night.

She squirmed in his embrace until he finally sighed and put her down. She was so short that she had to crane her neck to look up at him.

“Go, little one. Before I drag you back to our bed. I’ll come get you after you finish with Felix, it’ll be entertaining to watch you fight him.”

She rolled her eyes but otherwise didn’t respond.

They parted ways at the door and Caius couldn’t stop himself from staring at her as she disappeared behind the corner. He felt he was being needy, but he couldn’t help it. The bond called to him like a song, tempting him to run after her and scoop her into his arms.

He swallowed his penury for his True Mate and readied himself for a long day of negotiations of contracts with the Bavarian troops.

**XXXX**

Bella laughed unreservedly when Felix tripped over her foot and was sent sprawling into the dirt.

“Fuck!” Felix cussed.

“My point” Bella said cockily.

Jane actually cracked a smile, which would’ve been the equivalent of Bella rolling on the grown giggling in hysterics, so she took it. Jane was hardly one to show emotions outright, but Bella was adamant on getting the girl to come more out of her shell.

Bella learned Jane was turned when she was young, so she never really got to experience in being a woman grown. She actually had a chip on her shoulder about that that she carried with her for years. She also was devoted to Aro and the cause, not only to keep order, but to keep her sanity. Bella learned that Jane and ger brother really had nothing else to do and would be driven mad had she not joined the ranks. The Voltueri were her family now, and she appreciated having a sense of purpose.

Bella liked Jane, a lot. Both of them were thrust into a world they did not prepare for, and Jane was happier to have a female friend that was less proper as the wives.

Bella grinned back at Jane and winked.

Felix suddenly (and without warning) jumped to his feet a lunged at Bella, for which she tired to dodge, but Felix faked a turn and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her off the ground. She tried to kick and claw at his massive arm, but he was immovable.

“Alright!” Bella choked. “Point for you!”

Felix grinned and set her back on her feet.

“Caius taught you well,” he mused. “But you wont be able to rely on your newborn strength forever, _Isabella_.”

He said her full name as he knew it would annoy her.

She let out an involuntary growl in response.

_If he keeps this up I’m going to rip his fucking head off, _Caius growled in her mind.

She smiled to herself but backed away. She didn’t need Caius to come barrelling in here like a bat out of hell. She could defend herself.

_I’m fine,_ she thought back at him. _This is actually fun. How’s your meeting with the Bavarian’s? _

_Boring_, he grumbled back. _I should be done in the next thirty minutes and I will come get you. I want to take you into the city tonight and test your restraint being surrounded by humans._

She giggled when she saw his actual motivations in taking her out. A few days ago he ordered Chelsea to shop for some evening wear for Bella to choose from that were now in their closet. He also made a stipulation that the dresses be extremely low cut and short, something to highlight her legs.

_You are incorrigible you know that?_ She thought to him.

He sent her images of his remembering her in a dress at their time in the villa and thought how beautiful she looked to him. He wanted something similar for their evening tonight, something similar, but sluttier.

_You are so nasty, master Caius,_ she thought peevishly.

_Please keep in mind that I only like to be called, master, in the bedroom,_ he teased.

Bella let out an involuntary laugh which prompted Felix and Jane to stare at her like she had three heads.

Bella shrugged it off and told them they were done for the day. She wasn’t tired per say, but simply drained. She was done with her social responsibilities and wanted some time alone before going back to their chambers before their big night out. She was shocked that she was actually excited to spend the evening away from the guard. It had been so long since she got to be alone with him.

She quietly checked in with Caius through the bond and saw that he was busy threatening the Bavarians for disobeying a direct order. Caius had slammed his fist on the steel table they were standing around with the Bavarians cowering in the corner. It was clear he was pre-occupied and didn’t need her nagging. So she quickly told him he could find her in the gardens when he was done.

Bella got to know her mate more now. She knew he had to keep the pretense of being a ferocious and savage leader in order to keep the peace. He did his rulings through fear and violence, and she was shocked to find that she accepted it so willingly. She actually understood it more now that they were fully mated. She saw the hundreds of years of history and saw that this tactic, combined with Aro’s theatrics and Marcus’ calm, made for a successful democracy.

She sat on one of the benches that was surrounded by hydrangeas. She actually wrinkled her nose at the smell. When she was human she hated flowers, and now as a vampire she thought they stunk to high heavens, just pooling gasoline on the flames of her dislike.

The grey skies were turning slightly darker, clear signs that the day was almost over. Part of her missed sleeping, but another part didn’t realize the peacefulness that came with the night. She enjoyed spending it with Caius. Sometimes (in between their physical affections at night) he would walk with her through the gardens hand in hand. It was actually quite sweet of him. A side that he would of course never present to anyone but her of course.

Bella’s heads snapped to something in distance, behind the large vine covered gates. It sounded like it was a half mile away. Which was odd considering it was all closed off property behind the gates. Something the Voltueri did in the 19080’s so they could enjoy the sun without human prying eyes.

She rose to her feet and walked towards the iron bars, listening for anything she deemed inconsistent with the surroundings.

“Bella,” someone whispered.

Bella jumped back six feet and stared at the gate with wide eyes. There was something familiar about the voice, but she couldn’t put her mind on it. It was like something she heard from a muddled distant memory in her human life. She felt the same way when she called her father on the phone after she turned, it was all just so… foggy.

“Bella,” the voice repeated. “It’s me, love. I’ve come to get you away from this wretched place.”

Bella stood in shock as Edward appeared from the vines and into her view. He was a mere fifteen feet away from where she stood. She could barely keep from turning and running in the other direction. The only thing that stopped her was the pure agony on her former boyfriend’s face.

He was paler than usual, and his topaz eyes were wilder than usual. His hair was a complete mess with pieces of forest and dirt in it. His shit was also filthy, he looked like he had just run through the jungle to get to this place.

“Edward,” she breathed. “What happened to you?”

“Never mind that,” he said stepping forward to grasp the iron bars. “I’ve come to get you. Come, love. You can climb the gate! Quickly! Before _he_ comes back here.”

“Edward…” she started.

She didn’t know what to tell him. She didn’t know how to even begin what she experienced over the last year. She didn’t know how to tell him about her being held captive, her finding a True Mate, and then later falling in love with him, and then finally turning into a vampire. She didn’t know how to tell him any of this, because it was too much to express.

“You look so beautiful,” he murmured with his eyes raking up and down her body. “Even with human blood in your system. But that’s alright. Carlisle will fix you up, get you on the straight path. It’s alright, love, you can come home.”

He stuck his hand through the bars and offered to her. Inviting her to come forward.

She couldn’t leave the Voulteri with all the guards to stop them, nor did she really want to. Caius was her life, not him. Not anymore anyway.

“I can’t,” she said quietly. “Edward, you can’t be here. You need to go.”

Edward snorted but still didn’t drop his hand. “You can! You don’t belong with that monster. He’s tricked you you know. They believe in that ancient primitive curse in True Mates. But it’s all fabricated. I have never seen it before in my 150 years on earth. Neither has Carlisle! Don’t you see, Bella? He’s doing this to punish me for having you. This is what they do, they punish and are cruel for no reason. Please, love. Just come with me, I can keep you safe!”

When Bella didn’t move, she saw a shift in Edward’s eyes. His pupils no longer held the love and admiration for her. Now it was anger and hostility.

“Think of how selfish you are being!” he growled at her. “Esme and Alice miss you. You were a part of our family. You must come home.”

Bella felt that familiar short temper of her newborn nature come out. She was furious that after _he_ left _her_ that he had the audacity to try and blame her for this. She was happy, much happier than she ever was or ever could be with him. What kind of life did he have anyway? Going from place to place, imitating forever to be a teenager, and living life vicariously through humans, pretending to be them. Rather than embracing who they were and experiencing new things everyday and contributing to society. It sounded more like purgatory than paradise to her.

Her fists were clenched so tight that her nails were cracking through her diamond hard palms. Her teether were clenched so tightly that she swore she could snap a steel pole in half. She walked slowly to the bars and regarded him with pure anger and disgust.

“I. Am. Home,” she snarled in response.

Edward’s hand suddenly reached out and snatched her arm. Bella’s eyes narrowed in anger, and before she could do anything, she felt two meaty hands on her arms. She turned and saw Jasper and Alice behind her with Emmette hold her arms back.

Bella snarled in response and tried to throw him, but she suddenly felt weak and like she was about to fall asleep. Which was an odd feeling since she was turned almost a full four months ago.

Her emotional whiplash must’ve been strong, because she felt the slight tug of Caius entering back into their bond. She could tell he was finishing up with his meeting but was anxious where her anger was coming from. He came into her mind mildly amused, anticipating her anger stemmed from her fight with Felix. But he was horrifically shocked when he realized she was standing nose to nose with Edward Cullen, glaring him down.

_“BELLA!”_ Caius screamed out loud.

Of course, she couldn’t hear him, but she heard his commands and fury through the bond.

_“THE CULLEN BOY IS IN THE GARDENS! SOMEONE CEASE HIM IMMEDIATELY! FELIX! GET OVER THERE OR I WILL FUCKING SKIN YOU ALIVE!” _

Bella was fighting her eyelids from drooping; it was like someone had drugged her and she was fighting to stay awake.

_Bella_, he thought softly. _I’m coming, but you must stay awake. I need to see what you see, or he will take you from me. Please… _he begged.

_I’m trying my best, I promise. It’s just so hard, _she thought pathetically.

Bella tried but she was struggling. She could feel his sprinting down the halls of the castle, but she could also feel Emmette scooping her up and running with her in his arms.

_“TOMBAS!” _she heard Caius order._ “GET OUT THERE RIGHT FUCKING NOW OR I WILL BURN YOUR WIFE ALIVE AND FUCK THE FUCKING ASHES!” _

Bella tried to make out the way they were going, she noted they were going east and towards the gate to a black Audi.

_You’re doing so well, mio caro, _he thought gently at her._ Just stay awake. Fight them if you must, but please, keep your eyes open._

For the first time since she’d known him, she broke her promise to him and fell into a deep slumber.

That’s when the rain began, wiping away any trail or scent for Caius to follow.

They had simply vanished.


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so I am actually going to make one more chapter because I am having mad writers block and i want this out of my face lol. Hopefully it will be complete before 2021!
> 
> Also, it has been brought to my attention that someone has plagiarized this piece on fanfiction. They go by the name High Admiral Greer. Please ignore them or call them out on their blatant disrespect for new authors trying to flex their writing muscles through this platform.

Bella screamed at the top of her lungs as she was suddenly thrust back into consciousness. There was a dim light that lit up the ugly plaster with an outdated celling fan. The sounds of semi-trucks were speeding by with the rustling of trees. The cheap fabric the bed spread scratched uncomfortably at her skin. The room smelt of harsh cleaning solutions that tried to mask the smell of mildew and human sweat. It was the sourest foul thing she smelt since she turned.

She took in her surroundings a realized she was sitting in the middle of a motel room with Edward sitting at the foot of the bed with Emmet and Jasper flanking his sides. She could also hear Alice and Rosalie whispering back and forth with each other, but it was so low she couldn’t hear it.

She suddenly sat up and crab walked closer the other end of the bed.

Had her heart still been beating, it would have leapt out of her chest.

“Ed… Edward wha- what’s going on? Where am I!?”

Edward slunk forward on the bed, closer to her, which only made her inch backwards even further.

“Bella,” he breathed with that same crooked smile she remembered from her human life. She wasn’t surprised she still thought it was a charming smile. But his eyes. There was something wrong with them. They weren’t the beautiful topaz she remembered. They looked unnatural, like someone had colored them in with a sickly looking golden brown.

“You were confused, love,” he said gently. He reached to touch her foot but she ripped her leg away on instinct.

“Caius put you under some odd mating spell. But don’t worry, we took you away from him so he would never harm you. You can forget all the lies and nonsense he told you. You can with us again, we can be a family.”

“I don’t want to be here, Edward,” she bit back.

He sighed heavily and nodded once. She never remembered him looking so skinny.

“I figured that,” he mumbled thoughtfully. “I figured you would still have some reservations about being with me. After I left you like that I mean. But you have to know. I never meant to leave you like that. I only wanted you to experience humanity. I wanted you to be happy and alive. I never wanted this life for you! And here you go running to Voltuera to save me and get turned yourself!”

He shook his head and continued. “You deserved a normal life. One not tainted by supernatural danger. But since you are already turned now, we can give you a pure life. A life where you don’t have to kill and answer orders. You can be with us like you wanted.”

Bella sighed and tried to keep calm. She was more than aware that Edward was inching closer and closer to her as he spoke.

“Edward,” she said softly. “You can’t let this… this… guilt take over your life. You were never responsible for me. I am my own person and you don’t need to feel that…. I… I didn’t realize it until now, but I think I was too immature to see that you weren’t good for me. I was confused and dazzled by all the supernaturalness of it all. I’m sorry, but I know Caius is the man I am supposed to be with. He’s like… a part of me. A part of me that I could never share with you, I’m sorry.”

Edward glared at her. He didn’t respond verbally, he just set his jaw so tightly she thought he was going to break his teeth. He stared at her for about twenty seconds before he spoke. When he did, his voice sounded like steel.

“You’re still coming down from his spell,” he snarled while wrenching himself off the bed. “You need more time.”

She looked to Jasper and Emmett, but they both looked just as confused as was. However, when her eyes reached Jasper, he simply looked out the window towards Alice. She assumed he would keep loyal to his wife’s wishes rather than care about one miniscule newborn life. She knew where both men’s loyalties lied.

She stared at his wild eyes and hard-set jaw. He resembled more of a bulldog than her former boyfriend that she loved so wholly.

Bella stood up on her knees and tried to reason with Edward. She would assume he would just be in denial and clearly his two brothers were no help.

“You’re not listening,” she said firmly. “I don’t want to be with you. I don’t love you anymore, Edward. I love Caius. I’m sorry.”

Edward glared out the window without answering. She saw his nails digging into his hips as he held his domineering pose.

She of course still had that sliver of herself that screamed at her to go back to the Cullens. To go back to safety and the comfort of a loving family. She still had that same inexplicable pull to be with him and his family, it was almost as if there were a string around her waist that was gently pulling her back.

She knew the love she once had for Edward would always stir deep in her belly. But she was different now. She gained confidence with Caius that she thought she never had. She realized things with Caius just made sense and it was impossible to ignore. She loved him, she loved him much more than she ever did Edward.

She realized he must’ve been angry that she wasn’t throwing herself at him like she used to. She was embarrassed she was so pathetic and so willing to give her life away when she was human. She also realized that Caius taught her so much in the short time they were together. He taught her to stand on her own two feet rather than hanging of his every word. He didn’t paralyze her like Edward did, he abled to her look after herself, trusted her to do so in fact.

“Edward,” Jasper said finally interrupting the pregnant pause. “I think we should give her some time alone. Her emotions are all over the place. I think you forget that she is still a newborn and her mental state is not well.”

“My _mental state_ is _fine_, Jasper,” she snapped heatedly. “And please don’t talk about me like I’m not here. I can speak for my fucking self.”

The three brothers stared at her with wide eyes. She idly remembered that she never swore as a human, and here she did it so breezily, it was probably shocking to them.

_BELLA!??_ Caius screamed in her mind in her mind.

_Caius! _She shrieked in her mind. _You can hear me?!_

_I thought I lost you! Oh mio dio, sei vivo! Christ, I thought you died! You just disappeared from my mind and I thought they lost you! I was ready to rip apart every fucking person from here to Florence!_

His voice was as clear as if Caius were sitting right next to her.

_Caius_, she whimpered. _You’re okay? I wasn’t sure if the mind-meld would stretch this far. They didn’t hurt you did they? Are you alright? _

She heard Caius scoff at that notion through the bond. She could feel his anger, self loathing, and sadness that had left him. She wished she could take away his pain.

_I need you to listen to me very, very carefully, amore mio, _he said seriously. _I need you to look around the room for me and try and see any landmarks, or signs, or even the name of the hotel you’re in. Anything! Anything that would lead me to you. The blonde one must’ve discombobulated you and I couldn’t see anything. _

Her eyes darted around the room quickly. The TV was off and there were no manuals or pens that indicated the name of the motel. The curtains were drawn with Alice and Rosalie guarding the door. The bathroom had a disgusting smell of bleach and mildew that suffocated the entire bedroom. She saw that the carpet had various stains and cigarette burns, but nothing that told her where she was. She strained her ears to listen, but all she could hear were the rustling of leaves and the whoosh of cars flying by.

Bella felt inadequate and stupid compared to Caius. He knew so much he would be able to get out of this mess, or at least have been able to stop himself from getting into this one. She wished she wasn’t so stupid for following Edward. She wished she had just stayed where she was instead of trying to reason with him and be gentle.

_Nonsense, Bella. He lured you out, _Caius rebuked._ I can hear that you’re near a highway, though. That’s good, amore mio. Very good. I can work with this. Please keep listening. _

Bella strained her ears further, but she really didn’t hear anything except for a TV blaring a horrific pop song in the room adjacent to her own. After a few seconds of drowning out Jasper and Edward arguing, she finally heard very distinctly a mother yell at her child in Italian. The child had apparently wandered off and the mother was angry at her for doing so.

But it sounded odd, a much different dialect then in Volterra or on the Amalfi Coast. It was… rougher. It seemed more of a primitive dialect rather than the singsong one version she was accustomed to. She was suddenly grateful that she had such a strong connection with Caius that she could translate the various forms of Italian. Apparently, their True Mating bond also meant she could understand and translate Italian easily when he was connected to him. 

_“BARI!” _She heard Caius scream to his guards through the bond. _“She’s in Bari! Get moving! All of you! ARO! READY THE MEN! THEY HAVE MY FUCKING MATE! I WANT ALL OF THEM OR I’LL RAPE EACH OF YOUR CORPSES!”_

She figured that now that the sun was down, they could run there without the slowness of cars. She heard Caius cuss and yell at everyone that passed by him. She realized that every guard (besides his brothers) were terrified of him and what he might do.

_We know where you are, my love. We’re coming for you. But you need to keep looking around. Don’t stop looking, Bari is a very large metropolis, and it will be difficult to track one small coven without a lead._

_I’ll try, _she thought back to him pitifully. _Caius, they have Jasper with them. He can control people’s emotions. He made me fall asleep. They have an advantage over us. _

She could feel Caius’ fury and anger coming in waves. He was disgusted with himself that he couldn’t keep her safe. He was also furious that Edward was the one to outsmart him. He vowed that he would never let Edward see the light of day. At this point Bella didn’t know if Caius knew that she could hear and fell everything he was.

_If he tries to make you sleep again just give me a warning. Just don’t stop looking. He will fuck up eventually. The arrogant one’s always do. _

Bella nodded but didn’t say anything.

Emmette looked at her with his head cocked confusingly. He was probably wondering why she didn’t answer Edward’s previous question about how many guards there were, but was nodding her head silently like a nutcase.

This did not go unnoticed by Edward ether. He silently prowled towards her like a lion looking at a sheep. She was already pressed up against the headboard so tightly she could hear it splintering.

_You need to deceive him, _Caius coached gently. _He can’t know of our mental connection. The minute he does he will take you away from me again. _

Bella’s stomach flipped at the thought of never seeing him again. She was both furious and heartbroken that at the prospect. It felt like her body was being ripped in two. She wanted to bare her teeth and snarl at them. She wanted to rip his throat out for taking her away from Caius.

_Bella, _Caius said calmly. _I know you are angry. And I know you are confused. But you must control your emotions. This is your instinctual new-born vampiric behaviour talking. You need to keep calm so I can come and get you. Talk to him… like…. you used to. Or at least try your best not to anger him. We need to keep him talking so I know where you are. _

_Can’t I just fight them? Run away? _She growled back.

_You will do no such thing! _Caius barked through the bond. She actually felt him taking a steadying breath to calm _himself_ down before he tried to communicate further.

She could feel clearly that he was upset at the prospect of her getting hurt. He was also a little put out that she thought he couldn’t save her himself.

_I only taught you hand to hand combat with one vampire. Not several and that didn’t include one who has fought in so many armies, _he said finally. _I should’ve taught you more. This is my fault. I should’ve protected her better… _he said lost in thought.

_Caius… _she thought, trying to negate his argument.

_Hush, _he interrupted._ Listen and try to convince him. We have plenty of time to argue later when you are back in my arms. _

Bella swallowed her pride and anger, if felt like she was swallowing a baseball covered in sand, but she did it. It was incredibly difficult, but she would do as he asked. Not because she wanted to, but because she needed to wait for her mate. 

She took a deep breath a tried to remember the times with her father. She recalled when Caius told her to think of a happy memory to control her anger. The times where she and him would sit and just simply watch a baseball game in a comfortable silence. She remembered this as being a very happy time for her as she and Charlie were so similar.

_Very good, little one. This is very good, _he crooned.

“Ed… Edward,” she said with as much fake intrigue that she could muster. “I am… _sorry,_” she gritted the word as it tasted foul and bitter on her lips. “I don’t know what’s gotten into me. I think Jasper might be right. I j – just need a minute alone… to… uh… c – collect my thoughts?”

Edward stared at her for three heartbeats before he slowly walked to the side of the bed and sat down. Bella tried her best not to recoil from his thigh was rest against her foot.

“I understand, love,” he breathed quietly.

He raised his hand a gently dragged his knuckles over her cheek and then gently let his fingers curl around the nape of her neck.

“I know this is all so confusing for you. I forgot that you’re a newborn. I suppose I’m just not used to you this way. It’s just that I – ”

He suddenly stopped and let out a low snarl. He quickly yanked his hand back and stood from the bed, towering over her. He was glaring at something on her neck for which she realized he felt the bite mark that Caius had left.

It was the mark of a True Mate, as Caius had once put it. He told her that she would forever be marked as belonging to another. However, Bella learned it was not a symbol of possession, but more of a symbol of devotion. It was like a wedding ring. Caius had snorted at that assessment when she told him that. He said human traditions were not applicable to vampire royalty, but in a nutshell she was correct.

Regular vampires could not leave marks as serious as this on each other. The only ones where this applied was to True Mates. Mates destined to find another were blessed with this marking. Of course, this was something that was rare, so she knew this proved her original story to Edward.

“How did he do this?” Edward demanded. “How did he leave a mark on you?!”

“I – I don’t know,” she stammered.

“You are a vampire now!” he growled. “Bite marks are only supposed to stay _after_ you have turned. Not _during_ the change!” Edward threw his hands up and looked to Jasper. “Make sure she doesn’t leave this room! Emmett, come with me! I need to speak with Carlisle immediately.”

When the door slammed behind them, she glanced up to a very solemn-looking Jasper.

**XXXX**

Caius was running like he never had in his entire life. He never felt such panic and anger at one time, not even when he was turning. This was something so different, he actually cared about something else other than himself. He was horrified when she tuned up missing only to have Edward Cullen steal his mate away from him.

That horror was only amplified when he was suddenly cut off from her thoughts. It was terrifying to suddenly have a mind that she didn’t inhabit. It was like he was missing a piece of his soul.

He had destroyed the east wing of the castle when she disappeared without a trace. He threw chairs, smashed walls, kicked down doors. When someone got near him to calm him down, they ended up on the floor with a body part missing. He demanded that every guard from Volterra to Naples was deployed and in search of his woman.

When she finally came to and spoke to him, it was like the skies opened up and shone a light on his spirit. It felt like that warm blanket that she provided to his mind was resituated. He hated it when she was absent from his mind.

“Master Caius!” Tobas whispered quietly. “I think we found something.”

Caius turned in mid-stride and reached into Tobas’ open palm to reveal a leaf. Caius smelt the leaf and growled lowly. It was Bella’s scent for sure, but it was mixed with Edward’s stench. The rat must’ve figured they would never find them this far outside the city.

“Follow the trail. If the scent dies out on the way to Bari, then we will find other options when we get there.”

“Yes, sir.”

Jane shook her head and looked up at the sky. “The trail will end, Caius. It’s going to train soon.”

Caius clenched his fists and fought the urge to punch a tree. “You don’t think I already know that!? That’s why we must hurry rather than wasting time blabbering on.”

She cocked her head and regarded him thoughtfully.

She and Caius always had a very similar attitude when it came to missions with high stress. They were very calculated and very militant about it. Very rarely did they let their emotions get the better of them. He supposed he looked a mess comparatively to his cool and collected self in previous operations.

She took three small steps so she was face to face with him. Well, face to chest, she was even shorter than Bella was.

“We will find her, Caius,” Jane said softly. “You needn’t worry.”

Caius was slightly taken aback by her tender tone. He supposed Jane had grown attached to Bella in some way as well. She was well acquainted with her after all.

“I hope so,” he muttered.

Jane nodded and like a flick of switch, was back to her cold and calculated demeanor.

When they arrived in Bari it was pure chaos. Of course, the scent was washed away with the rain. It was daunting to say the least, but Caius was constantly checking in with Bella. It had been almost a two weeks and she still hadn’t left the hotel. Not once was she left alone and no one told her anything. But he was happy that Edward hadn’t made another appearance yet.

He and the guard decided to do a massive sweep of the entire city of Bari. It was a large feat considering it was such a massive city, but he had no other choice. Bella couldn’t see anything from where she was imprisoned so he decided to start north and work his way down.

And he still hadn’t found her.

She had tried to reason with the brothers, but it seemed the only one who questioned Edward was Jasper. He spoke with her briefly but said nothing of letting her go. He simply agreed with her in not belonging to Edward, but otherwise remained silent. It seemed he was forever loyal to the little twit psychic.

Caius was a mess. He knew his eyes were wild and his hair was askew. He fed every night to keep up his strength, but he didn’t really enjoy it. In fact, he loathed feeding without Bella with him. It had grown into a morning ritual with the two. He liked having slow morning with a quick feed followed by his insistent petting that really never ended until she swatted his hand away giggling.

It was even more maddening that he could hear her in his head and he couldn’t find her. It was a feeling of powerlessness he never experience in his life. It was like he was falling with a rope to catch just inches away from his fingertips. He just wanted her back in his arms and she was so close he could almost taste her.

Bella was no better. She was constantly in a state of limbo and couldn’t find out where she was. It was frustrating for her and he had to remind her daily that she was not to fight the Cullens and to wait for him. He never really realized it until now, but her temper only amplified with the turn rather than dampening it.

She was given animal blood daily for which she hated. She was constantly given propaganda and misinformation on the diet of animals and how it was more ethical than the alternative. She simply nodded and smiled politely, Caius was appalled. She was disgusted when they first brought a live rabbit for her to feed on. Now, she craved it as it was the only form of subsistence she received. He felt her hatred in drinking it. He could even feel her getting weaker.

It was truly no wonder the Cullens stayed in high school and integrated into human living. They were so weak that one week in a vampire life, they would be torn to shreds. They could hardly defend themselves as the Volturi were older and had been feeding on nothing but humans for the past 700 years.

_Caius? _She thought at him softly. _Are you there? Jasper just left. _

Caius had just finished a sweep of a hotel on the coast. It was empty of Bella’s scent and was the last place he was looking on this quadrant of the map.

_Yes, little one, _he replied in relief as her voice always calmed him. He also realized that she was finally left alone._ We’ve finished with the sweep of Northern Bari. We are about to start with the west. Can you see anything yet? You’re alone now? Can you try again? _

It was apparent she was angry and frustrated. She wanted to leave, but Caius had convinced her several times to stay put in case she got caught and Jasper put his spell on her again. He wished to the Gods that he had taught her how to fight several people at once. He vowed that that be the first thing on the agenda after he kissed every inch of that lithe little body of hers.

She walked to the window and got a clearer view for the first time. She saw Rosalie was looking at her phone and not paying attention. Alice was arguing with Jasper off to the side, preoccupied. Bella gazed at the perimeter and saw a huge cathedral, or castle of some kind. It was far off to the east, so far that a human would not see it.

_That’s the __Castello Normanno-Svevo! _Caius thought at her gleefully. _You’re in the east! This is good news, Bella. But that area is covered with hotels and old buildings. We need more information. _

_I can’t see anything else! _Bella growled back furiously. _There is nothing else around here! I can’t see anything!_

Caius took a deep breath a tried to calm his nerves for both his sake and her own. He wasn’t mad at her, but he _was_ furious that the Cullens were so good in shielding her.

_Calm, little one. Calm. It will do us no good if you are too angry to focus. _

Bella sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger trying to do as he asked. He could feel her apology through the bond and he could tell this situation was weighing down on her spirit.

_You are doing very well, _he encouraged softly. _You are doing very well indeed, but you mustn’t loose hope. Keep trying. _

She continued to look around and saw a highway marker, a sign that was sun bleached, dirty, and far away. She squinted at it and tried to make sense of it but was coming up blank. She continued to stare at it and even Caius was having trouble seeing what she was.

_Maybe a 17? Or a 60? Either way it has to be east… _he thought carefully.

Caius ran through the rolodex of highways in his head and was coming up blank.

_Caius! _She practically squealed at him. _There’s something on the sidewalk! Look! On the ground!_

He could see through her thoughts there was indeed a title painted on the sidewalk that had the first few letters of it rubbed off. It wasn’t entirely clear, but as soon as he saw the word ‘Dafne’ written out he knew exactly where she was.

He saw through her eyes that Edward stepped out of an Audi and was scowling directly at her from the parking lot. He looked furious. Alice suddenly stepped in front of the window with panic clear in her eyes.

_“Bella,” _Alice growled through the window. _“What have you done?” _

Bella backed away from the window when she heard Edward yell at Alice to get packed.

_Caius? I think Alice just had a vision and must’ve shown Edward. What do I do? _

“Villa Dafne!” he bellowed to Jane and the guards. “It’s near Via G. Gentile! Off SS16! SHE’S BEING HELD AT THE VILLA DAFNE! MOVE! MOVE!”

Suddenly all 30 vampires veered course and ran though the dark streets of Bari to get to the shady bed and breakfast across the city. Caius felt his nerves sing through his veins at the prospect of seeing his mate again. This had been the longest they had been away from each other since they started speaking. He felt more on edge then he ever had in his entire existence and he wanted to get to her as fast as he could.

_I’m coming, little one. Just hold on. _

_Keep your eyes open, little one, _Caius begged._ I will be there as fast as I can. I’m coming. Just… stall them as best you can. _

_“What do you think you’re doing?!” _Edward snarled at her as he wrenched the hotel door open.

_“Ed – Edward, I’m not doing anything. I was just…” _

_“You were just what? Hmm?” _Edward was prowling towards her and slapped the door closed with the his siblings on the other side. _“Just telling your little _True Mate_ the coordinates of this place? I know all about your little bond. Carlisle told me the legends. It means nothing Bella.” _

Caius ran faster, as if it were possible. He was so close. He couldn’t stand the way that this man was looking at her. He never felt so helpless in his life.

“_Is he listening now? I hope he is. I hope he knows that you are mine. He will never see you again as long as I am here.”_

Caius whipped through the trees and shrubbery, he blurred past cars and he could’ve sworn he surpassed the airplane flying over his head. He couldn’t even hear Jane or the other members of the guard as he was too focused on his mate’s peril.

When he got a brightly lit bridge, he quickly jumped into the wet underpass which made him wade through gunky water and mushy mud. Had a human ran through such filth, they would’ve sunk to their knees in the sludge. He, however, practically flew over the ravine all together.

_“Do you think he really loves you? This is just your power, Bella. This doesn’t mean True Mates exist, it’s just like how Alice can see the future, or how I can read minds. You have the ability to communicate with others through their minds. This isn’t some strange supernatural bond. It’s just your gift.” _

_Oh my god, his eyes are so wild. I’ve never seen him look so crazy. _

_“Edward, please. Just… stop. We need to end this silliness. I am with Caius now.” _

Caius growled when he saw through her eyes how Edward had backed her into a corner. She was furious and terrified at the same time. She kept telling herself to wait for him to rescue her, but her instinctive urge to run away or lash out at him was slowing winning her over.

_Two minutes, little one. That’s all I need. Just keep stalling him. Please, my love. Just hold on, _Caius begged.

Suddenly, Edwards hand shot out and grabbed her arm, yanking her forward with an ugly snarl. And that’s when Bella’s newborn instincts finally kicked in.

“NO!” Caius screamed out loud.

Bella twisted her arm so it broke his hold. She then used a technique that Caius taught her, and faked a punch only to kick Edward directly in the stomach. She used the wall to push herself upward and come barreling down on him to grasp at his skull. This was a move Caius often used to pull an opponent’s head off.

Edward fell to his knees and slammed her into the floor, splitting the cement with a loud _crack_. Bella quickly recovered and used the heel of her barefoot to smash into his face. She tried to scramble away, but suddenly Emmett and Jasper wrenched the door open (no doubt hearing the commotion) and grabbed her arms to haul her backward.

_“Edward,” _Jasper said. _“This isn’t right. We shouldn’t be doing this.” _

_“If you can’t handle it, then leave, Jazz! I told you this would not be easy!” _

Caius finally came to the brightly lit highway that led the hotel. He was horrified to find a busy highway that had no crosswalks. With a set to his jaw he took a few steps back before he jumped and sored over the traffic that was preventing him from running through.

He knew this was a stupid decision. He knew that when Aro saw this through his memories that he would be punished, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. His mate was in trouble and he would stop at nothing to bring her back home.

He found their room easily enough. It had that ugly and ostentatious jet-black Audi in front of it after all. Caius darted to the door only to see his mate snarling and snapping while Emmett held her back. Jasper was physically restraining Edward to keep him at bay and Alice was shoving Rosalie backwards, away from Bella. Caius quickly gathered that Alice and Jasper must’ve turned on Edward while Rosalie and Emmett stuck to the original plan. 

“Emmett!” Alice screamed. “Look out!”

Caius lunged towards the larger brother and ripped one of his arms off easily. Emmett howled out in pain and clutched the root that now replaced his once large arm. Black liquid oozed out of the nub like molasses. Rosalie screamed and ran over to her husband in panic, leaving Alice unattended.

He then snatched Bella and yanked her behind him protectively. She was still snarling like an animal and it was apparent she had little control over herself. He quickly sent her calming emotions through the bond to quiet her down. But he didn’t once take his eyes off Edward though. This boy was slippery enough as it were.

She was calm once she realized it was him and gripped his forearm painfully tight, not that he minded.

“Caius!” Bella breathed from behind him.

He could finally see her thoughts and feel her emotions that slammed into him like a bettering ram. It was apparent that touch only amplified their connection. She was confused, angry, and concerned for his wellbeing all in one go. Her emotions coated his soul like syrup over ice cream. He wanted to bathe in it.

He, on the other hand, only felt pure relief. It was like he was cold all day and her touch was a soothing whiskey to warm his nerves. He couldn’t believe he lived so long without her touch, her smell, and her laugh. It was like he was finally being brought back to sanity when they reunited. He had to actually stop himself from running his hands all over her body looking for injury. The bond was so strong that he could feel her physical self through his own, and knew she was unharmed.

The very thought of what Edward was about to do to her was not overlooked by him. He put his feelings towards her aside and straightened his body. He would maul her with his affections later. Right now, however, he would deal with the Cullens.

“Stay behind me,” he ordered quietly. He didn’t want her to get caught in the crossfire of the fight about to come.

“She doesn’t belong to you!” Edward screeched.

Caius snarled and bared his teeth at the young boy. “And I seem to recall us tell you many months ago that she doesn’t _belong_ to you either. She is a person, not a toy nor pet. She can make her own choices.”

“Fuck you,” Edward snarled. “You have her under some sick spell. My Bella would never want to be near the likes of a monster like _you_.”

“You shut your fucking mouth!” Bella yelled from behind him.

Caius smirked at Bella’s protectiveness. And more specifically, smirked at the effect it had on Edward. The young man’s face seemed to twist into pain and anger when he saw how hard she clung to her new beau. It amazed Caius that a vampire of his age still held the arrogance of some moronic teenager.

“You need to let me go, Edward,” she said after Caius calmed her a little more. “We can’t keep doing this.”

“We will keep doing this because you don’t belong with him. You shouldn’t be feeding on people! What would Charlie think of you?” he asked disgustedly.

Bella sighed and Caius could feel a prickling of remorse run through her body.

“He would want her to live her life as nature intended,” Caius snapped. “Now move or die.”

Edward set his jaw and stood his ground adamantly. It was clear that he was going nowhere.

Caius ran toward the younger Cullen and threw him into a nearby tree. The tree broke in half and sent the log rolling down a steep cliff. Caius casually towed his mate

He had to be careful as there was little to no cover in case a human was lurking around.

“Edward,” Alice sobbed quietly. “Edward, please. They’re coming.”

“Who?” Jasper demanded.

Caius couldn’t help the smirk that spread across his face. “My guards.”

He heard Jane and the other guards before he saw them. Her small feet flying over the cobbles was something he would never mishear. She was so lithe and stealth in everyday life, she could sneak up on many people without a trace.

Bella’s hand tugged on Caius’ to get his attention.

_They don’t deserve to die for this, Caius, _she thought at him gently.

Caius couldn’t help the growl that vibrated in the back of his throat.

_They **do** deserve to die, they took my mate. _

_Caius… _

_No. _

Bella sighed heavily in response. She was so fucking stubborn sometimes it was exhausting.

_Please, Caius? Can you just do this for me? _

Caius whipped around and glared at her angrily.

She was using his emotions against him to get her way. He wanted to her to stop being a brat and just listen to him for a change. But he knew she wouldn’t listen. He sometimes wished she would be just as brutal and unrelenting as he was. But her kind heart was a part of who she was, and he loved that aspect of her soul.

He already knew what Aro would say about this. If any Prince or King had his mate stolen from the very headquarters of the vampiric order they would kill on the spot. Or worse, tortured for decades before being sentenced to death.

_Aro will decide their fate, _he growled back at her. It was the only fair compromise he could come to. He couldn’t promise that he would live, but he could at least promise a fair trial. Even if he knew his verdict already.

She responded by throwing her arms around his ribs and pressing her cheek into his back. She was glad he was at least trying to be diplomatic rather than letting his temper rule his judgements. It immediately calmed him down to have her touch him so openly. He forgot how good it felt to be in her arms.

“Come,” he boomed when the guards emerged from the tree line. “The Voluteri will decide what to do with you.”


End file.
